Here we stand
by Ultimate Queen of Cliffies
Summary: Sequel to Conceal, Don't Feel. Elphaba and Elsa, with help from their friends, try to end the war between Oz and Arendelle. Unfortunately, that's not as easy as it sounds. Kristanna, Fiyeraba, Elsa/OC.
1. Chapter 1

**AN: So here it is - the sequel to _Conceal, don't feel_!**

**Off-topic: I just booked tickets to go and see _Tick, tick... boom! _in the theatre in April - I'm taking my friend there for her birthday. Is there maybe someone else who has seen it and if so, could you tell me what you thought of it? I'm not really sure what to expect.**

**Okay, let's get this thing started! I hope you all like it!**

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**Chapter 1.**

When Elsa descended the stairs of the palace, Kristoff elbowed Fiyero and Jermain in the side.

They both turned around and the moment they laid eyes on Elsa, their eyes widened and they said at the same time, "Wow."

Elsa blushed slightly. Glinda, who came bouncing after the snow queen, beamed at the three men. "Doesn't she look just perfectified?" she gushed. "It took me _ages _to get her and Elphie to sit still, but I think it was worth it. I mean, I know it's a war, not a fashion show, blah blah," she made a dismissive gesture, "but even in war time, a girl has to look good. Especially Elsa and Elphie, because, you know, they're our powerful sorceresses and this war kind of depends on them. No pressure," she added when she caught the look Elsa sent in her direction.

"And Elsa – ooh, can I call you Elsie?" she asked excitedly.

Elsa's eyes widened in horror, but before she could protest, Glinda had already continued her rambling.

"Elsie and Elphie, they're just the _best_, and they're going to kick that stupid Wizard all the way back to the other world he came from!" She fist-pumped the air.

Fiyero laughed. "Glad to see you so enthusiastic, Glin."

"You know her," a new voice said sarcastically from the doorway. "She's always enthusiastic. Annoyingly so."

Fiyero smiled when he saw his wife coming up beside Elsa. "You look beautiful, Fae."

Elphaba studied herself critically, then turned to take in Elsa. Both girls raised their eyebrows at the same time.

"Um, Glin?" Elphaba said. "What exactly were you trying to do here?"

"I wanted to present you as a team," Glinda explained. She fist-pumped the air again. "Team Elsa and Elphaba of Arendelle!" She frowned. "No, that doesn't have a nice ring to it. Team Elsie and Elphie? Ooh! I know!" Her eyes lit up. "Team Elphiesie!"

The men stared at her. Elsa and Elphaba just said flatly, "No."

"Team Elselphie?" Glinda tried again.

That earned her two death glares.

She pouted. "Alright, fine. Never mind the team name. Seriously, though," she insisted. "You can't say they don't look good."

Elsa was wearing her hair in a ponytail, with snowflakes woven through it and he tiara resting on her head. Glinda had used some dark grey eye shadow and dark eyeliner to bring out Elsa's large blue eyes; and the snow queen was wearing an emerald green dress that was long-sleeved and practical, yet fashionable at the same time. She was also wearing a cape similar to the blue snowflake cape she had created, and just as transparent; only this one was grey, with shimmering silver snowflakes on it.

Elphaba's hair was also in a high ponytail, only instead of a tiara, she was wearing her black pointed hat – against Glinda's protests. She was dressed in the exact same clothes Elsa was; only Elphaba's dress was the same grey as Elsa's cape, and her cape was a silvery white.

Glinda squealed. "See? Now you're both dressed in silver, grey and green, and –"

"_Dressed _in green?" Elphaba echoed drily.

Glinda waved her away. "You know what I mean, Elphie. My point is, you look like a team now!"

"Yay," muttered Elsa.

Elphaba flashed her a grin.

"Who's ready to kick some Wizard's ass!" Glinda yelled.

Jermain walked up to Elsa and kissed her cheek.

"You look beautiful," he said.

Elsa smiled at him. "Thank you."

"Hello?" Glinda said irritably. "I asked who's ready to kick some Wizard's ass!"

"Me!" shouted Olaf, jumping up and down on Sven's back. The reindeer made a howling sound in agreement. No-one else responded.

Glinda sighed. "Never mind, then," she muttered irritably.

Anna appeared from the direction of the village and she smiled when she saw her sister. "Wow, Elsa. You look beautiful!"

Elsa returned the smile. "Thank you."

"You, too, Elphaba," Anna added. "You two really look like a team!"

"Thank you!" Glinda exclaimed happily.

"I just came from the village," Anna said, looking at the two sorceresses on the steps. "I warned them about the upcoming fight, and the men are willing to join in if need be."

"Whoa." Elsa held up both hands. "No," she said firmly. "That's not going to happen."

"I agree," said Elphaba. "It's bad enough that all of _you _so desperately want to put yourself in danger to defeat that man, but I refuse to let the rest of Arendelle join in as well. It's me he wants, after all."

"Elphie," Glinda said sternly. "Don't start that again."

"Alright." Kristoff looked around him. "So what's the plan?"

"Glinda, Fiyero and Jermain are going into Oz to try and convince the people of the Wizard's evilness," said Elphaba. "Not that I think that will make much of a difference," she muttered, "but Glinda insists on trying to clear my name."

The blonde nodded firmly. "The sooner, the better," she declared.

Elphaba sighed. "Right."

"Elphaba and I are going straight to the Emerald Palace," Elsa took over. "The goal is to get her inside; I'm coming with her so that I can create a diversion if need be."

"A diversion," Anna repeated. She giggled. "Like an eternal winter or something?"

Elsa glared at her and her sister cleared her throat. "Sorry."

Elsa smirked.

"So Elsa and I try to kill him," Elphaba continued, "and then… I'm not sure, actually. If we don't succeed, we'll try to get back to Arendelle; if we do… I suppose we'll need Glinda if we do."

Fiyero nodded in agreement. "The Ozians trust her more than anyone else," he said. "With the Wizard and Morrible both gone, we're going to need her to keep Oz under control."

Glinda nodded confidently. "I can totally do that."

Kristoff and Anna both raised hands, as if they were at school.

"Um, excuse me," said Kristoff. "But what about us?"

"You'll stay here," Elphaba said.

"What? No!" Anna protested. "Why? We want to help!"

Elsa looked at Kristoff. "I need you to keep my sister safe," she said softly.

Kristoff nodded solemnly. "I will."

The snow queen looked back at her younger sister. "Anna," she said in that same soft tone. "Arendelle needs you."

"But –"

"I have to go," said Elsa. "Elphaba helped me, too, and with my powers… I want to do something good, Anna. I want to make a difference."

Elphaba squeezed Elsa's arm.

"If anything happens to me," the white-haired girl continued, eyes still locked with her sister's, "then you're all Arendelle has left."

Anna's eyes widened. She bit her lip.

"If I die, you'll be queen, Anna," said Elsa softly. "Elphaba needs _me_; but Arendelle needs _you_."

Anna nodded slowly, tears in her eyes.

"Okay," she whispered.

Elsa descended the stairs and wrapped her arms around her sister.

"Don't worry," she tried to reassure the younger girl. "Who knows? Maybe everything will turn out the way we want it to. We could all be back by nightfall, safe and sound, and the Wizard could be dead."

"Yeah," agreed Anna half-heartedly. "Maybe."

Elsa hugged her tightly for a moment, then turned around. "Shall we go?"

The others nodded and the snow queen looked at Elphaba.

The green girl mounted her broom and rose high into the air. Glinda quickly followed in her bubble, and Fiyero and Jermain each mounted a horse.

Elsa concentrated and pushed herself forward with her powers, easily following the others as she left a path of ice and snow in her wake.

"I hope they'll be okay," Anna said worriedly.

Kristoff squeezed her shoulder comfortingly. "I'm sure they will be." He steered her towards the palace doors. "Why don't we go inside and wait for them there?" he suggested.

Anna agreed, and Olaf and Sven followed them into the palace.

* * *

"Elphaba?" Elsa shouted when she saw the green witch flying out of a window like the devil was on her heels.

"Elsa, get out of here!" Elphaba yelled back. Elsa just opened her mouth to ask why when Gale Force soldiers appeared in the windows and on the roof of the palace, pointing rifles and crossbows at the two sorceresses.

Elsa cursed under her breath and shot magic from her fingertips, moving herself forward; but not before one of the arrows from the Gale Force's crossbows had hit her arm, scraping it.

She hissed in pain, but she pressed on, concentrating on her powers and on pushing herself forward, away from the palace.

The two girls met up in the forest nearby – Elsa found Elphaba there, leaning against a tree and trying to catch her breath.

"I have the worst timing ever," the green witch muttered, panting. "I flew straight into the Throne Room… where the Wizard was just having a meeting with all of his Gale Force soldiers."

Elsa actually had to suppress a snigger at that. "Seriously?"

Elphaba nodded with a sour face. "Yeah. I'm actually surprised I managed to get away without even a scratch…" She trailed off when she caught sight of the bleeding graze on Elsa's arm. "I see that doesn't go for both of us. I'm sorry, Elsa."

"It's fine," the white-haired girl assured her. "It's not that bad."

Elphaba ripped a piece off the bottom of her dress and used it to bandage her friend's arm. "That should do until we get back to Arendelle." She sighed. "We should probably try again later."

Elsa touched her arm lightly. "We'll be fine," she said softly.

"There's something else, though." Elphaba swallowed. "When I first flew into the Throne Room and the Gale Force pulled out their rifles, I ran into an adjoining room to hide and find another way out."

Elsa nodded. "And?"

Elphaba swallowed. "It was… it was the Wizard's room," she said. "Or, well, I assume it was. It was large and pompous and there was a huge four-post bed in it." She rolled her eyes. "The thing is… I found something in there."

Elsa just kept on looking at her expectantly.

"A green glass bottle," Elphaba said quietly. "Exactly the same one my mother gave to me before she died."

Elsa frowned. "He stole it from you?"

The green girl shook her head. "No," she said. "I still have mine. He has one, too."

"Okay…" said Elsa slowly. "Maybe it's just a coincidence?"

"Maybe," Elphaba said reluctantly. "But… in all my life, I've never come across anything that's even remotely like the one I have. And for the Wizard to have one…" She swallowed. "Do you know anything about the history of Oz?" she asked Elsa.

The snow queen shook her head. "Not much," she said. "I know that there was a long line of queens before this… Wizard came to rule… and I've heard that he's from another world, but I don't know if that's true."

"It seems to be," said Elphaba. "And the thing is… he arrived in Oz with his hot air balloon about twenty-two years ago."

Elsa nodded. "Okay."

"He didn't become our Wonderful Wizard, however, until at least one and a half years later."

Elsa frowned. "What are you trying to say, Elphaba?"

Elphaba bit her lip. "I'm thinking… what did he do in the meantime?" She met Elsa's eyes. "I know my mother and father didn't have the best relationship," she said softly. "My father was away from home a lot, and my mother was lonely… at least, that's what the people of Munchkinland always said about her. There were rumours about her with other men…" She trailed off.

Elsa's eyes widened when she realised where this was going. "Elphaba," she began anxiously, "you're not saying…"

"I am." The dark-haired witch sighed and leant her head back against the tree bark, closing her eyes for a moment. "What if he's my father, Elsa?"

Elsa didn't say anything.

"I mean, there has to be a connection with my mother," Elphaba continued. "There just has to be. It's not like there are green glass bottles like these to be found in all of Oz – like I said, I've never seen anything like it before… until now. What if he gave that bottle to my mother? What if they had an affair?"

"That still doesn't mean he's your father," Elsa insisted, but Elphaba shook her head.

"I didn't look like Frex," she said. "Not at all. Everyone always said that I looked like my mother, but those same people also always said that they couldn't recognise any of my father's traits in me. Think about it, Elsa – it's the most logical conclusion, isn't it?"

Elsa was quiet for a moment. "Maybe," she then admitted. "But…"

Elphaba made a face. "Yeah. I know."

Elsa gave her a sympathetic smile and squeezed the green girl's arm. "We should tell Glinda," she suggested. "Maybe she can find out more."

Elphaba nodded. "Good idea. Come on," she said, picking up her broom again. "Let's go back to Arendelle for now."

* * *

The moment they reached the palace, Anna, Kristoff, Fiyero and Glinda came running outside.

"Elsa!" Anna exclaimed in shock when she saw her sister. "You're bleeding!"

"It's nothing," Elsa tried to say, but her sister would have none of it.

"Come, Kristoff, help me," the small redhead ordered him, and she and Kristoff helped Elsa inside.

Fiyero immediately wrapped his arms around Elphaba, holding her tightly. "What happened?" he asked worriedly. "Glinda and I were in the Emerald City, talking to the people, when we suddenly heard all these gunshots… We came back here as soon as we could – we hoped you and Elsa would travel straight back to Arendelle."

Elphaba nodded tiredly, closing her eyes for a moment as she leant back against Fiyero's chest. "We did," she confirmed. She told him what had happened in the Throne Room. "I'm lucky I didn't get shot, but Elsa…"

"Don't worry, Elphie," Glinda tried to soothe her. "It was just a graze – she'll be fine."

Elphaba looked miserable. "Yes, but she did get hurt because of me."

Glinda shook her head fervently. "Stop that nonsense right this instant, Elphaba Thropp," she said sternly. "I thought we've been over this. Now, what are we going to do? Try again?"

"Actually," Elphaba said, pulling away from Fiyero and looking at the blonde, "I was hoping you could look into something for me."

She told the blonde about her green glass bottle and the Wizard's, and her theory about it.

When she finished, Glinda was gaping at her and Fiyero looked shocked.

"Wow," he muttered.

Elphaba gave him a wry smile. "Yeah. I guess you could say that."

Glinda started bouncing. "Oh my Oz, Elphie! That would explain so much!" she exclaimed. "Like your powers – you have parents from different _worlds_, Elphie! I think you're right!"

"Okay, one: we don't know that," Elphaba snapped irritably. "And two: if I _am _right, then that is no reason whatsoever to be all enthusiastic and squealy about it. My greatest enemy is my father? I don't know about you, but that's not exactly good news to me."

Glinda faltered, then set her jaw in determination.

"Don't worry, Elphie," she said firmly, saluting. "I'm going to travel back to Oz and I'm going to find out if you're right, no matter the cost!"

Elphaba winced. "Don't say that. It makes me suspect you're going to do something stupid."

Glinda scoffed. "I never do anything stupid, Elphie. That's Fiyero's job."

"Hey!" the prince protested.

Glinda ignored him. "I'm also going to find Jermain and bring him back here, so that he can cuddle with Elsa." She grinned. "I mean, they're just too cute together."

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "Glin…" she said pleadingly. "Please be careful."

"I will." Glinda hugged her green friend. "See you soon, Elphie!" With that and a wave of her hand, she conjured up her bubble and flew off.

Elphaba tried her hardest to have faith and stay calm, but she had a bad feeling about this.

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**Please review? :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Yes, I know I left CDF on a mean cliffy; but I figured that with Hans and Morrible gone, it'd be better to start a new story and continue from there than expand the previous one.**

**Anyways, I just want to thank you all so much for your reviews - 19 of them on the first chapter! I think that might be a personal record :). Really, I'm overwhelmed.**

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**Chapter 2.**

"Ow!" yelped Elsa. "Anna!"

"Sorry, sorry!" The younger girl pushed some hair away from her face, then realised her hands were bloody from Elsa's wound; and she sighed. "Now there's blood in my hair."

Kristoff chuckled softly. "Come here." He gently pushed Anna aside and took the wet cloth from her, gingerly dabbing at Elsa's wound to clean it.

Anna watched over his shoulder in interest. "Where did you learn how to do that?" she asked.

"Treat wounds?" Kristoff shrugged. "I used to spend most of my time in the mountains," he reminded her. "I've fallen off a cliff quite some times already. Let's call it experience."

"Huh." Anna shuddered and wrapped her arms around herself. "Yeesh."

"It's not so bad." Kristoff took some disinfecting cream and carefully applied it to Elsa's arm. "Except for the time when I broke my arm and I could see my own bone." He made a face and chuckled. "That wasn't pretty."

Anna paled visibly and shuddered again. "Yuck."

Elsa giggled softy, a sound that soon turned into a gasp of pain when Kristoff accidentally poked her wound. Blood started pouring out again, and Kristoff cursed and grimaced. "Sorry." He tried to stop the bleeding with a wet piece of cloth.

"It's okay," Elsa said, though she was looking a little pale.

Not as pale as Anna, however, who looked like she was about to throw up.

"Anna?" Kristoff asked as he stopped the bleeding and applied some more cream to Elsa's arm before he pulled out a bandage and started bandaging it up. "Is something wrong?"

"I just… I don't really like blood," said Anna in a trembling voice, eyes wide as she watched Elsa's wound. "Like… I hate it, actually. As in… sometimes I faint when I see it."

Elsa chuckled softly. "That's true," she told Kristoff seriously. "When she was about ten, she fell off her bike once and hit one of the knight armours in the hallway. She got a deep cut in her knee that needed stitches."

Anna made a face at the memory. "Yeah…"

"What happened?" asked Kristoff in amusement as he finished up bandaging Elsa's arm.

Elsa smirked as she moved her arm, testing it. "At first she got up and said that she was alright. Then Papa, who came running as soon as he heard the noise, said that she was bleeding; and apparently she took one look at her knee and promptly fainted. She didn't wake up until after the doctor had stitched her up."

Kristoff grinned. Anna blushed furiously.

Then Kristoff frowned slightly. "What do you mean, 'apparently'?"

Elsa's face fell and she lowered her gaze. "I… I wasn't there," she confessed quietly. "Papa told me the story later on, but… I was… well, in my room. As always."

Kristoff looked slightly confused. Anna touched her sister's arm comfortingly.

Elsa looked up again and saw Kristoff's face, and she smiled wryly.

"There's a reason the gates have been closed for so long," she said softly. "I had to learn how to control my powers; and until then, I was supposed to keep them hidden from everyone. The people, the staff… and Anna. I practically spent thirteen years of my life in my room."

"Wow," muttered Kristoff, taken aback by that.

Anna gently hugged her sister. "But you're out of your room now," she told the snow queen. "You can control your powers, and I won't ever let you shut me out again. Understood? We're going to make up for all those lost years."

Elsa smiled gratefully. "Okay," she agreed.

Anna nodded firmly. Then a mischievous grin slowly spread across her face. "Hey, Elsa?"

"Mm?"

Anna's grin widened. "Do you wanna build a snowman?"

Elsa looked up at her sister for a moment, speechless. Then a smile spread across her own face as well and she jumped to her feet.

The two sisters ran out of the room, giggling like the small children they once were. A stream of ice blue, snowflake-like magic left the tips of Elsa's fingers, transforming the hall into ice; and both girls shrieked with laughter as they slid through the hallway, nearly slipping and toppling over a few times.

They made their way outside, where Elsa immediately created more ice and snowfall. Anna laughed and danced around for a few moments before joining Elsa again and the two started building a snowman together.

Kristoff appeared in the doorway, watching with one arched eyebrow. Elphaba and Fiyero, who had been talking nearby, joined him.

"Seriously," said Kristoff. "How old are they?"

Elphaba smiled. "Well, they have to make up for some lost time," she said logically.

"Behold," Kristoff said sarcastically. "Her Majesty, Queen Elsa of Arendelle; and Her Royal Highness, Princess Anna of Arendelle. Aren't they just the picture of sophistication and grace?" He made an extravagant gesture towards the two girls, as if he was announcing them to a large group of people.

Just then, Anna slipped and fell onto her backside in the snow with a loud shriek. Elsa chortled and clamped two hands over her mouth to stifle her laughter.

"Not funny!" Anna said with a glare at her sister, but she was grinning. She made a snowball and threw it in Elsa's direction.

It hit her sister straight in the face, causing Elsa to lose her balance and topple over into the snow as well. Anna rolled over with laughter.

Kristoff shook his head, but he was smiling.

"Ooh!" Olaf suddenly appeared next to them. His eyes were wide and he was bouncing. "Anna! Elsa!" he yelled, running towards the sisters as soon as his little legs could carry him. "Wait for me!"

"Hi, Olaf!" Anna smiled at him.

Elsa created a small slide of ice and Olaf quickly climbed the icy stairs and slid down, poking his tiny stick arms high up in the air. "Yee-hoo!"

Elsa made the slide longer and higher, and she and Anna joined Olaf in sliding down time after time and ending up in a large heap of soft powder snow. They were all laughing.

Fiyero looked at Elphaba, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "Wanna join in?"

She scowled. "Fiyero Tiggular, if you think I'm going to slide down a –" She cut herself off with a yelp as Fiyero suddenly lifted her up in his arms and carried her over to the steps leading up to the ice slide.

"Come on, it's fun!" he laughed, pushing her up, and she caved and climbed the rest of the stairs on her own. She slid down the ice with Fiyero right behind her, both of them laughing.

"Snow party!" Anna yelled, a beaming grin on her face. It had been a long time since she had felt this happy and carefree… the last time possibly being right before Elsa had accidentally struck her with her magic all those years ago.

Elsa was making a large ball of snow, and Anna ran over to help her. As they built a snowman together, Olaf joined them, holding his breath, eyes shining.

"Could you make me a girlfriend?" he asked breathlessly, his eyes wide and hopeful.

Anna giggled and Elsa smiled faintly at him. "Sorry, Olaf," she said apologetically. "I can build a snowman, sure, but… honestly, I have no idea how I ever managed to bring you to life. I don't think I could do it again."

Olaf's face fell. "Oh." Then he brightened again. "Well, can I help make this snowman, then?"

"Sure!" Anna agreed easily.

Kristoff, meanwhile, was still watching them from the steps in front of the palace. "Good heavens," he muttered as he watched the others – all of them _adults_ – playing around in the snow like children.

Sven roared and happily started padding in the direction of the others, but Kristoff stopped him. "Oh, no," he said sternly. "We're not joining in. We're better than that, buddy."

Sven made a sad howling sound and Kristoff scowled. "No, Sven, we're not doing that."

The reindeer huffed.  
"Don't talk to me like that," Kristoff said sternly.

Eventually, Sven managed to get loose and jumped over to where Olaf, Anna and Elsa were just finishing up with the snowman.

"Ah, just in time!" Anna petted Sven, then reached in the bag hanging from his saddle and pulled out one of the carrots Kristoff always kept there. She pushed it onto the snowman, giving him a nose. "There! All done!"

Sven roared happily and tried to bite the carrot off the snowman, but Elsa pushed him aside and Anna quickly fetched another carrot for Sven to eat. "Here you go, buddy," she said as she fed it to him.

Sven took the carrot from Anna and made to eat it completely, but Kristoff approached him and yelled, "Hey!"

Sven obediently waited for Kristoff to reach him. Then Sven bit off one half of the carrot and Kristoff took the other half, munching on it happily.

Elsa, Anna and Elphaba all shared disgusted looks.

Fiyero was practically toppling over with laughter.

* * *

It was late the next morning that Glinda returned to Arendelle in her bubble.

"I spent the night with some nice people in Oz," she explained apologetically as she landed and Elphaba and Fiyero hurried towards her. "Sorry it took me so long. I don't like flying in the dark, so I waited until morning to leave again. Are you all okay?"

"Nothing happened," Fiyero assured her. He laughed. "Nothing except for a snowball fight, anyway."

"Elsa and Anna were reliving their childhood," Elphaba said with a smile.

"And Fae and I joined in," Fiyero added brightly.

Glinda giggled. "Good. You could all use some fun." She smoothed out her skirts. "Now, I'm just going to freshen up for a little bit – could you two meet me in that sitting room Elsa showed us yesterday in about an hour or so?"

"Sure," Fiyero agreed. Then he frowned. "Wait a clock-tick. Where's Jermain?"

"He's on his way," Glinda assured the prince. "Bubbles are faster than horses." With a small wave, she disappeared inside.

Elphaba bit her lip worriedly. "Do you think she found something?"

Fiyero just placed a calming hand on her shoulder. "She might have," he said. "But it doesn't change anything, does it? No matter who your father is, you're still the same person." He kissed her cheek sweetly. "I still love you."

She smiled and allowed herself to melt into his embrace. "I know," she said softly. "I love you, too. But still… if the Wizard is really my father…" She sighed. "It would suck," she said bluntly, "and yet it would explain so much. I'm not sure right now whether I'm hoping that he _is _my father, or that he isn't."

"I understand what you mean." Fiyero held her for a few moments until he felt her relaxing a little. Then he pulled away.

"Come on," he said. "Let's go inside to wait for Glinda."

Elphaba nodded and together, they went back inside the palace.

* * *

"Elsa?"

Anna found her sister in one of the private sitting rooms upstairs. Elsa was standing in front of a large portrait of the girls' parents, looking up at it silently.

The painting portrayed the king of Arendelle, looking stern but kind, exactly the way he always was. He was standing behind a chair on which his wife was sitting, one hand on her shoulder. The queen herself looked dignified, but there was a small smile gracing her lips. They looked exactly the way Anna remembered them.

"Elsa?" she said again softly, and the snow queen slowly turned her head to look at her sister before looking back up at the painting again.

"Do you…" She swallowed. "Do you think I let them down?" she then asked, her voice almost inaudible.

Anna's heart broke when she heard that. "Oh, Elsa…" She went over to hug her sister tightly. "Of course not," she said, her voice sounding a bit choked. "Why would you think that?"

Elsa shrugged half-heartedly. "Because… they tried so hard to hide my powers from everyone," she said softly. "And now… now everyone knows, and –"

"They only wanted to hide them because you couldn't control them and they thought it would be safer for you!" Anna shook her head and looked into her sister's eyes solemnly.

"Elsa," she said. "They only wanted what was best for you. They were just… afraid, I think. They didn't understand your powers. They made some decisions that maybe weren't too great in hindsight… like locking you away, hiding you from the world. But they tried their best, and they would be so proud of you if they could see you now. You're controlling your magic, you're being a wise and fair ruler to Arendelle… you and me are close again." She wrapped her arms around her sister's waist from behind, resting her chin on Elsa's shoulder and looking at the portrait along with her sister. "They'd be proud. I know they would be."

"I miss them," whispered Elsa.

Anna squeezed the white-haired girl's waist. "I know. I miss them, too."

Elsa sighed and Anna felt some of the tension leaving her sister's body. "But at least we have each other."

"We do," Anna agreed, still hugging her sister. "We always will."

Elsa turned around and smiled at the redhead. "Thank you."

They hugged again and turned, glancing once more at the portrait of their parents before leaving the room together.


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Hi guys, sorry for the long wait! I forgot I had this chapter pre-written... I've been a bit sick for the past few days so I'm not getting much writing done, but anyways.**

**I love how you're all suspicious at the fact that nothing terrible has happened yet.**

**Caricature of a Witch: I'm not making any promises about not killing anyone off.**

**SuperSaphiraWhoLock: hahaha, I loved that review ^_^. Can I just say that I love the fact that you took the time to read these, even though you've never seen Wicked? :) Anyway, I'll tell you now that the fluffy happiness won't last. *evil Hajco as Master of the Mill laugh* MY CLIFFIES WILL COME ONCE MORE! MWAHAHAHAHAHA! *clears throat* Sorry about that.**

* * *

**Chapter 3.**

"So," Glinda said as she sat down on the couch, the wide skirts of her light green dress flowing around her. She smoothed them out and looked at Elphaba and Fiyero, who were sitting across from her, looking at her expectantly.

"I found out," the blonde girl said simply. "I know the truth now."

Elphaba raised one eyebrow. When Glinda didn't continue, the raven-haired witch prodded impatiently, "And? For Oz's sake, Glin, just spit it out!"

Glinda sniffed. "You don't have to get snippy with me." She sighed and seemed to deflate a little. "Well… let's just get this over with, then. Elphie…" She took a deep breath. "You were right."

Elphaba's eyes widened slightly.

"You're his daughter," Glinda confirmed softly. "You're the Wizard's daughter."

Elphaba slowly exhaled, trying to keep her head clear. "Okay." She needed to focus on something else now, just for a moment. "How did you find out, anyway?"

"I went into the Wizard's Throne Room," Glinda explained brightly, "and I poked my wand at him and demanded he tell me the truth."

Elphaba was stunned.

"Um, Glin?" Fiyero said carefully. "I think when Fae asked you to find out the truth, she meant more like… spit through some old Munchkinland records, or something. Not threatening the Wizard with your wand."

"Oh." Glinda waved him away. "Well, you know how I feel about dusty old libraries," she said, shrugging. "And this was much quicker and just as effective, wasn't it?"

"If you were there in the Throne Room with him," Elphaba said slowly, "then does that mean the Wizard still trusts you to be on his side?"

"No," Glinda said immediately. "Hans has reported back to the Wizard before we caught him – Hans, obviously, not the Wizard - so the Wizard knows that we're all on the same side now – you and Jermain and Fiyero and I, I mean. And Elsa and Anna, too. I would have taken him out myself," she said, "if it hadn't been for the Gale Force soldiers guarding him in the Throne Room."

"I'm glad you didn't try to get to him," Elphaba muttered. "You could have gotten yourself killed. Didn't they try to capture you?"

Glinda shook her head. "I stayed safely up in my bubble," she said. "The Throne Room is high enough for me to float near the ceiling, out of everyone's reach; and the Wizard ordered for them not to shoot me – I guess he wants me alive. I just wanted to question the Wizard, and I did. He told me that right after he arrived in Oz, he travelled through Munchkinland, where he briefly had an affair with Melena Thropp. He wandered to the Vinkus, roamed Ev for a little bit and even spent a few months exploring Arendelle before making his way through the land of Fliaan and back into Oz, where he moved on to the Emerald City to become our oh so wonderful Wizard."

"Oh, great," Elphaba said sarcastically. "So because of my apparent father's lack of morality, I might have half-siblings running around all over the world?"

Glinda couldn't help but giggle at that. "I really don't think so, Elphie. Just because he had affairs, doesn't mean all those women got pregnant; and we don't even know if he's had any affairs beside the one with your mother."

Elphaba sighed. "I guess that's true," she relented. "So… does he know now?"

Glinda shook her head. "I didn't say anything about our suspicions," she assured her friend. "I just interrogated him, asked him if he's had an affair with Melena Thropp and when, and then I left again."

"He'll be able to put the pieces together himself," Fiyero said thoughtfully. "He probably suspects that something is going on that has something to do with Melena now, so he might go and look into that… it won't take him very long to find out."

Elphaba sighed deeply. "Great," she muttered. "Just great."

There was a sound in the hallway and then Anna, Elsa and Kristoff came in, Jermain following close behind.

"Hey, Jer," Fiyero greeted his brother. "How did it go?"

Jermain shrugged. "I tried to convince some Gale Force soldiers of our case," he said. "You know, he gang we used to hang out with sometimes when we still worked for the Gale Force ourselves? I have no idea if it worked, though." He sat down on the couch and when Elsa sat down beside him, he took her hand, lacing their fingers together. He was still looking at his brother, however. "What about you? Did anything interesting happen?"

Glinda and Fiyero exchanged a look and Elphaba snorted. "You could say that, yes."

Elphaba told him the story of the green glass bottle and then Glinda took over, telling Jermain, Anna and Elsa about her most recent findings.

"Ouch," Jermain said sympathetically. "I'm sorry, Elphaba."

"The Wizard of Oz, your father…" Anna shook her head. "Wow. Does that… change anything? With the war, and everything?"

"No," Elphaba said firmly. "Not for me. Father or not, I don't care one twig about that man. He has oppressed people and Animals alike and he should pay for what he did."

"Good to see we still agree on that." Glinda cocked her head to the side thoughtfully. "So what's next?"

"Elphaba and I will try to get into the Throne Room again," said Elsa. She looked at the green girl opposite her. "Only this time, I think it would be a good idea to take Fiyero, Jermain and Glinda with us."

Elphaba sighed. "I guess," she conceded. "Alright, then. Yero, Jermain, you two can stay outside to do the diversion part. I'd like Elsa and Glinda in there with me."

"Are you sure?" asked Elsa, and the dark-haired witch nodded.

"Glin may not know it, but I think she has some power over him," she said. "He likes her. I know he did when she still worked for him, but the fact that he let her get into his Throne Room without having the Gale Force shooting her down tells me that he still has a soft spot for her. We could use that. And Elsa… your powers could really come in handy."

Elsa nodded resolutely. "Then I'll be there."

"Me, too," Glinda agreed.

"And us," Jermain added. "Though judging by Fiyero's face, he would much prefer going in with you over staying outside to be on the lookout."

"I just like to be around Fae to make sure she doesn't get hurt," Fiyero defended himself, and Jermain flashed him a grin.

"Believe me, little brother," he said. "I know the feeling."

Glinda squealed. "That is so cute!"

Elphaba and Elsa just rolled their eyes in unison, then caught each other's gaze and both burst out laughing.

"You're not coming with us, though," Elphaba told Fiyero sternly. "I mean it. I can take care of myself, and Elsa can take care of herself, too. We need you outside – we can handle the Wizard."

"Um, hello?" Glinda waved at the two sorceresses. "What happened to 'Glinda can take care of herself, too'?"

"Well…" Elphaba said hesitantly. "I mean, don't get me wrong, Glin, but, um…"

Glinda huffed and tossed her curls over her shoulders. "I can totally take care of myself!"

"We'll find out soon enough," was all Elphaba further said on the subject.

"When are we going to do this?" asked Elsa. "Tonight?"

"Sure," agreed Elphaba. "The sooner, the better."

"Most Gale Force soldiers aren't on duty around dinner time," Fiyero knew. "There's only two of them outside the Throne Room, if my memory serves me well, and a few scattered around the Palace and the City; but most of them are allowed to go home and have dinner with their families."

"Dinner time it is," Elsa decided. She looked at Elphaba. "And this time, we're going to make it work."

"I hope so, Elsa," said Elphaba softly. "I really hope so."

"Ooh! I know!" Glinda suddenly perked up, gushing. "Team Elsaba!"

The others shared a look. Then they all burst out laughing.

* * *

"Elphaba?"

The green girl turned around, only to find Anna and Kristoff standing there, looking a bit hesitant.

She smiled. "Hey."

Anna returned the smile. "Hi." She lowered herself onto the couch and looked up at the dark-haired witch. "I just wanted to ask you… you know…" She bit her lip. "You'll take care of Elsa, won't you?"

"Of course," Elphaba assured the younger girl immediately. "Don't worry, Anna. I won't let anything happen to her."

"It's not that I don't trust her," Anna said quickly. "Or you. It's just… Elsa is the queen of Arendelle, not me, and I'd like to keep it that way." She sighed. "She's my sister. I love her. I feel like I've had to miss her for too long already, and the thought of her getting hurt – worse than a graze on her arm, I mean… it's just…"

Elphaba flashed her a smile. "I understand," she assured the younger girl. "Really, I do. I'll try my best, Anna, I promise. I don't want to see her getting hurt, either – or anyone else, for that matter."

She noticed Kristoff's arm around Anna's waist then, and she raised one dark eyebrow. "On a different note… is there anything you two would like to share with the rest of us?"

They followed her gaze, and when they realised what she was looking at, Kristoff hurriedly dropped his arm. Anna's face flushed slightly.

Elphaba smirked.

"I'm just gonna… um… go see if… if Sven is okay," Kristoff stuttered before hurriedly fleeing the room.

"So what exactly is going on between the two of you?" asked Elphaba when she and Anna were alone. "It's fine if you don't want to tell me – it's none of my business, anyway – but I'm just curious. You seem to have a very… odd relationship."

Anna laughed a bit nervously. "Yes, well… I don't know, really. He's nice."

Elphaba raised her eyebrow. "Just nice?"

Anna faltered. "I… I guess?"

Elphaba nodded. "Okay."

The younger girl looked at her suspiciously. "That's it? Okay?"

"I'm not Glinda," the raven-haired witch reminded the princess. "I'm not going to push you for details when there are no details to tell. Honestly, I'm surprised at myself for even asking you in the first place," she muttered, more to herself than to Anna. "I guess Glinda has rubbed off on me more than I thought."

Anna giggled.

"Elphaba?" they could hear Elsa calling from outside. "It's time to go!"

"Coming!" Elphaba called back. She looked at Anna again.

"I'll take care of your sister," Elphaba promised. "Or, well, I'll do the very best I can."

Anna nodded. "Thank you. And be careful yourself, too," she added.

Elphaba laughed. "I will."

The girls made their way outside, where all the others were already waiting.

"Is everyone ready?" asked Elphaba.

Elsa, Glinda, Fiyero and Jermain all nodded. Sven bellowed enthusiastically.

Elphaba laughed and petted the reindeer's nose. "Sorry, Sven. Not you."

Elsa gave her sister a tight hug and looked at Kristoff over Anna's shoulder. "Keep an eye on her?"

He nodded. "I will."

Elsa then went over to Jermain and slipped her arms around his neck, kissing him softly. "Stay safe."

"You, too." He kissed her again once more before letting her go.

Glinda, meanwhile, was hugging everyone – Olaf, Sven, Anna, Kristoff – and Fiyero had folded Elphaba in his arms.

"Please be careful," he said to her.

She rolled her eyes. "You know me," she said brightly. "I'm always careful."

He tightened his grip on her. "I'm serious, Fae," he said, his sapphire blue eyes clouded with worry. "I mean, I can't help but think of what happened that day with Hans, and…"

She softened and kissed him. "Yero, I'm not freezing now," she reminded him gently. "My life is not depending on anyone but myself. I'll be fine. I can take care of myself."

"Just promise me you'll be careful," he insisted, and she relented.

"I promise." She kissed him again. "But only if you do the same."

He nodded and she hugged him one last time before letting go and turning around. "Shall we?"

Glinda conjured up her bubble, Elphaba mounted her broom and Elsa got ready as well. Fiyero and Jermain mounted their horses.

"We'll see you all again soon!" Glinda called cheerfully, waving at the others. Then she and Elphaba rose high up in the air and flew in the direction of Oz, with Elsa, Jermain and Fiyero right behind them, until they had all disappeared from sight.

* * *

**No cliffy... yet. Review? *puppy-dog eyes***


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: Hi everyone! Sorry it's been so long, I was a bit sick and then very busy, so...**

**Anyways, on with it. (And no, SuperSaphiraWhoLock, no-one is getting pregnant :').)**

* * *

**Chapter 4.**

When Elphaba flew into the Throne Room this time, it was empty.

She landed and looked around, broom clutched tightly in one hand and a magic spell on her lips, just in case; but nothing happened. No-one came storming in, no alarm went off. The room was just empty.

Glinda flew in a minute later, landing gracefully before looking around her as well. "No Wizard?"

"And no Gale Force," Elphaba muttered darkly. "I don't trust it."

Elsa launched herself through the window then.

"He's not here," Glinda said to her before turning around and wondering aloud, "Where could he be?"

"Are Fiyero and Jermain in place?" asked Elphaba.

Elsa nodded. "They're outside," she said, "waiting for a sign from us."

"Okay." Elphaba held her broom out in front of her like a spear. "Let's split up."

Glinda was holding her wand tightly as she slowly crossed the room to the giant mechanical head that was hanging limply down from its stand. She tentatively looked behind it, then heaved a sigh with relief when she saw that there was nothing there. "No Wizard here."

"Or here," said Elsa, lowering her arms.

Elphaba opened the door to the Wizard's chambers in the back corner. Elsa followed her inside, hands raised again in case her ice powers were needed. The two girls searched the rooms, but didn't find a thing.

"Anything?" Glinda asked when they returned, but they both shook their heads.

"Nothing at all," said Elphaba. "It's like he just disappeared."

"Let's search the Palace," suggested Elsa, already moving towards the door that led to the hallway. She poked her head out and looked around her. "Nothing… no-one there."

"No-one?" Elphaba appeared next to her. "That's strange… there's always at least some staff members roaming these hallways."

Elsa looked at the dark-haired witch. "You think it's a trap?"

Elphaba hesitated. "I'm not sure," she said. "I don't trust it… let's keep our ears and eyes open. Glin, are Fiyero and Jermain still in place?" she called over her shoulder. "We might need them."

The blonde padded over to the window and peered outside. She waved at the two men down below. "They're still there," she reported. "No Gale Force to be seen."

"Good." Elphaba carefully stepped out into the hallway.

There came a sound from the far end of the hallway and Elsa immediately spun around, ice shooting from her fingertips and hitting the source of the ringing sound.

"Elsa," said Elphaba patiently. "You just froze a standing clock."

Elsa blushed. "Sorry… I heard something, and I thought…"

Elphaba sniggered softly. "Don't worry about it. I've had my fair amount of magical accidents, after all."

Elsa looked around. "This is strange," she said softly. "This is a huge palace… yet there's no-one to be seen."

Elphaba glanced back into the Throne Room, but there was still no movement there, either – except for Glinda roaming the room, looking around her suspiciously for anything out of the ordinary.

Elphaba turned back to face Elsa. "I guess we'll just have to go and search –"

She was cut off when she felt the tip of a rifle being pressed between her shoulder blades.

"Drop that broom," a voice growled in her ear, "and hold your hands up where I can see them."

A quick glance in Elsa's direction told the green girl that the snow queen, too, had a rifle pressed against her back. She opened her mouth to chant a spell, but instead someone used a piece of cloth to gag her.

"No spell chanting, little witch," a Gale Force soldier hissed in her ear. He gestured towards his colleagues and they tied Elsa's wrists behind her back, preventing her from using her ice powers.

The soldiers stepped aside and there was the Wizard.

"Hello there, Elphaba, Elsa," he said, nodding at the both of them as if he were greeting them as guests to his party. "How are you doing today?"

Elphaba was gagged and so all her sounds came out muffled and unintelligible, but Elsa was pretty sure the green witch was trying to shout profanities at the Wizard.

"I'm sorry," the Wizard said, chuckling. "I can't hear you."

Elphaba's face flushed and more muffled sounds came from her mouth.

"Let us go right now," Elsa ordered. She risked a quick glance past the Wizard, into the Throne Room, and locked eyes with a frightened-looking Glinda for a moment. She made a gesture with her head for the blonde to get out of there before she was spotted, but she wasn't sure if Glinda understood.

The Wizard laughed. "You're not in Arendelle anymore, Your Majesty," he said mockingly. "You have no power here. You can't order me around."

Elsa's eyes narrowed. "Do you even know who you're talking to?" she demanded.

The Wizard raised one eyebrow.

Elsa gestured towards Elphaba with her chin. "That is your _daughter _over there!"

Elphaba's eyes widened, barely believing that the other girl would just blurt that out. The Wizard, however, didn't even blink.

"Yes," he said. "I know."

Elphaba exclaimed something unintelligible that Elsa assumed was supposed to be something along the lines of, "You know?!".

"How?" Elsa asked, baffled.

The Wizard snorted. "It wasn't so hard to figure out, you know," he said contemptuously. "Glinda came here the other day and questioned me for half an hour about my green glass bottle and my relationship with Melena Thropp of Munchkinland. I did some research then, and then I realised why that last name was so familiar: two years ago I invited a promising young sorceress to meet me. A Miss Elphaba Thropp." He bored his gaze into Elphaba's. "I did have an affair with your mother," he confirmed. "And I am your father."

She huffed.

"You look like her, you know." He started circling Elphaba, studying her intently from all angles. "You have her eyes, that chocolate brown colour, and her fine and delicate bone structure." He grabbed her chin and studied her face, despite her struggles. "But you have my chin," he muttered. "And my nose, and my hair, so dark and thick… and my temper, if I'm correct." He laughed and let go of her. "You should be happy to have gotten your mother's eyes. Mine are blue, after all, and I don't think that would have looked quite as good on you with your… complexion."

She just glowered at him.

He made a dismissive gesture. "Take them away," he said. "Take them to the dungeons." He locked eyes with Elphaba. "I want you to bring _her _to my Throne Room tomorrow morning at ten."

"Yes, Your Ozness." The soldiers saluted and dragged the two girls off.

Elphaba stared the Wizard down until he was out of sight. Elsa, however, could only think about Glinda; she hoped the other girl had gotten away.

* * *

"Jermain! Fiyero!" Glinda all but stumbled out of her bubble, and Jermain's quick reaction was the only thing that kept her from falling over.

"Glinda?" Fiyero ran towards them. "What happened?"

"Elsa," Glinda managed between pants. "And Elphie… and the Wizard, and… Gale Force…"

Jermain tightened his grip on the blonde. "Glinda?"

"Out," she gasped. "Run… out of here… before they…"

"There!" a new voice shouted, and Fiyero and Jermain whirled around. Gale Force soldiers approached them.

"We have to go!" Jermain shouted, swinging Glinda onto his horse and jumping up himself as well.

Fiyero looked from the Throne Room window to his brother and Glinda, panicked. "But –"

"Fiyero, _now_!" Glinda shrieked, and the prince only hesitated another short moment before leaping onto his own horse. They stormed off, quickly leaving the Gale Force behind.

When they were far enough away, they dismounted, tying the horses' reins to a tree branch and turning to face Glinda.

"Glin," Fiyero said urgently. "What happened?"

"I'm… not sure," Glinda confessed, looking a little pale. "I was in the Throne Room, keeping an eye out for anything unusual… Elphie and Elsa were checking the hallway, to see if it was clear. The Wizard was nowhere to be seen, there were no Gale Force soldiers and there was no sign of any other staff members… Elphie and Elsa didn't trust it, they thought it might be a trap." She swallowed. "And then suddenly there were all these Gale Force soldiers, and I saw the Wizard… Elsa saw me and she gestured for me to get out, so I did, but…" She sniffled, tears brimming in her wide, blue eyes. "But they got Elphie," she wailed, "and Elsa, too!"

Fiyero paled. Jermain cursed under his breath.

"I have to get back there!" Glinda shrugged Jermain's hand off her shoulder and made to leave, but the Vinkun prince caught her with his arm around her waist.

"Not so fast," he said. "We need a plan."

Something stormed past them and Jermain swore again, more fervently this time. "Fiyero!" he yelled after the disappearing horse and rider that had just flashed by. "I said we need a plan!"

But either Fiyero was already out of earshot, or he just ignored his brother's warning.

Jermain sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. "Why is he so stupid?"

Glinda placed a hand on his arm. "He just loves her," she said gently. "That's all. He can't stand the thought of anything happening to her."

"And you think I can?" Jermain demanded in a high voice. "I'm scared, too, Glinda – I love Elsa and believe me, I want nothing more than to storm off to save her right now; but if I do, I will only get myself captured as well! We need a plan before we go in!"

Glinda was looking at him with a broad and beaming smirk. "You love Elsa?"

He flushed. "That's completely beside the point right now!" he cried. "They're in danger, and so is Fiyero!"

"Alright, alright." Glinda's smirk didn't falter. "Fine. Let's make a plan, then." She waggled her finger at him. "But don't think I'm going to let you off the hook so easily, mister."

Jermain just muttered something unintelligible.

"So… Palace or Arendelle?" Glinda asked practically.

Jermain hesitated. "I'd say Palace," he said, "because I know Elsa wouldn't want us to drag Anna and Kristoff into this, and because I'm not sure they could help us, anyway… but then again, what can _we _do?"

"Do you know where Elphie left the Grimmerie?" Glinda asked, frowning slightly as she thought over the possibilities they had.

Jermain blinked. "The what?"

"The Grimmerie." Glinda made a gesture. "The big magic book she always carries around?"

"Oh." He thought about it, racking his brain. "I… I'm not sure. I think she left it back at the palace in Arendelle… I didn't see it on her when we left, anyway. Why? Do you think you could help them with it?"

"Maybe." Glinda sighed. "I can't really… read it, to be completely honest…" She bit her lip. "But I could try. Or maybe we could find a way to get it to Elphie…"

"Do you think anyone has cared to mention _my _treason to the Wizard?" Jermain said thoughtfully.

Glinda blinked. "I don't know… why would you ask?"

"Because I'm still a part of the Gale Force," said Jermain. "If I put on the uniform, walk in there… I probably won't be able to sneak the girls out, but at least I could check up on them, see if they're doing okay – and maybe I can sneak something _in_." He looked at the blonde. "Something like the Grimmerie."

"I'd say it's worth a try," Glinda agreed. "Back to Arendelle?"

Jermain nodded determinedly. "Back to Arendelle."

"Great." Glinda formed her bubble.

"Good luck," said Jermain. Upon seeing her questioning look, he said, "I have to go find Fiyero. Prevent him from doing something stupid."

Glinda made a face. "Great idea," she said. "Good luck to you, too, then." She winked at him. "You'll need it more than I do."

* * *

Elphaba opened her eyes. "Fiyero is coming."

Elsa, who was sitting in the cell opposite the green girl's, looked up. "How do you know?"

"I don't know," said Elphaba. "I just do." She got up and started pacing. "He has to get away from here. I wish I could use my powers…"

"I know." Elsa sighed.

"Magic-proof prison cells," Elphaba muttered angrily under her breath. "Who would've thought Morrible would take such precautions before she died? I underestimated her. Again. Even with her gone, she still wins."

"No, she doesn't." Elsa sank down to the floor with her back against the wall, lost in thought. "We won't let her."

Elphaba rested her forehead against the iron bars and closed her eyes for a moment. "What if he gets captured?"

"He's smarter than that."

"Not when it comes to me," Elphaba argued. "He'd risk his life ten times over if he thought there to be even the smallest chance of saving me that way."

Elsa thought of what she knew about Fiyero – that he had left Glinda for Elphaba, that he had betrayed his fellow Gale Force soldiers and the Wizard he was working for in order to be with Elphaba, the look on his face when Elphaba had been freezing – and she believed the dark-haired witch.

"Okay," she said. "So how can we stop him?"

Elphaba kicked the bars. "I don't know."

"Maybe Jermain will stop him," said Elsa. "Or Glinda."

"If he even got out," muttered Elphaba.

"Don't be pessimistic," Elsa chided. "She's not down here, is she?"

Elphaba had to admit that that was true.

They lapsed into silence, neither of them knowing what to say or do next.


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: Sorry again for the delay! You wouldn't believe how busy I've been lately; and then once I had time again, I suddenly got very inspired for my original story, so... yeah. I'll try to keep updating this one and my other two fanfics at relatively regular paces, but forgive me if that doesn't always work out.**

**Elphaba'sGirl: yes, it was sort of a reference-ish thingy to _Made to be broken_ :). I was writing the dungeons and I couldn't resist making the two things similar.**

**SuperSaphiraWhoLock: haha, thanks :). No you're not being too enthusiastic. I'm not promising anything about babies.**

**BlueD: how well you know me!**

**Musicgal3: haha, I loved that list!**

**Everyone else: thank you for your lovely reviews, they all made my day/week! :)**

**On a side note: I'm very excited because I'm seeing Love Story the musical this Thursday, and in April I'll be seeing Jersey Boys and Tick, Tick... Boom! (The latter is a surprise for my friend.) Can't wait! :D**

* * *

**Chapter 5.**

"Glinda!" Anna exclaimed as the blonde entered the room the princess and Kristoff were sitting in. "Thank goodness you're here!"

Glinda looked from Kristoff to Anna and back, puzzled. "Why? Did something happen?"

Anna nodded tensely. "A general of the army came here a few hours ago," she said. "The Ozian army is on its way."

"And guess who's leading it," Kristoff said grimly.

Glinda must have looked confused, because he clarified, "Hans."

The blonde's eyes widened. "_Hans_?!"

Anna nodded, biting her lip. "He must have gotten away from his brothers and the Southern Isles somehow," she said softly. "He has joined forces with the Wizard again."

Glinda rubbed her forehead, heaving a deep sigh. "Oh, sweet Oz," she moaned. "What are we going to do?" She looked at Kristoff. "Don't _you_ know something?" she demanded a bit snippily. "You're the guy here!"

"I sell _ice _for a living," he stressed. "I don't know anything about war or battles!"

"Great. We're doomed." Glinda started pacing. "What are we going to do now? Elphie and Elsa are captured, Fiyero is an idiot and may just be captured as well by now, and Jermain isn't here. We have an Ozian army on our heels that wants to destroy Arendelle." She stopped and looked at Anna and Jermain as a thought suddenly struck her. "Unless…"

"Unless what?" asked Anna.

Glinda chewed the inside of her cheek thoughtfully. "Unless Fiyero and I, and maybe even Jermain, surrender."

Anna's eyes grew wide. "What?!"

"Or make the Wizard think we do." Glinda started pacing again. "After all, it's us he really wants. He wants Elphaba because she's a threat to him and he wants me and Fiyero, and possibly Jermain, because we betrayed him. Maybe if he gets us, he'll agree to let Elsa go and leave Arendelle alone."

"That is a great plan," said Anna sarcastically. "No, really, it's just perfect. By all means, go turn yourselves in. It's not like we care about you or anything."

Glinda glared at the red-haired girl. "You sound like Elphie," she said sourly. "Sarcasm is not very becoming for a princess, Anna."

"Plus," Anna continued, ignoring the blonde, "Hans is leading the army, and _he _is after _us_. After Elsa and I, I mean. He wants to be king of Arendelle. So even if we would agree to your plan, which we would never, it still wouldn't solve our problems."

Glinda sighed. "You're right."

"Wait a minute." Kristoff held up both hands, frowning slightly. "Did you say Elsa and Elphaba are captured?"

Glinda nodded tensely. "Yes. I was in the Throne Room with them, and there was no-one there… we didn't trust it," she said quietly. "Elphie and Elsa went out into the hallway and then suddenly, the Gale Force was all over them. The Wizard himself was there, too. I managed to get away, but they caught Elphie and Elsa… and Fiyero, that idiot, immediately stormed back to the Palace the moment he heard of Elphaba's capture. Jermain went after him to try and stop him, and I came here to get the Grimmerie… Jermain and I were making a plan to get the Grimmerie inside the palace dungeons, to Elphaba, so that she and Elsa can escape," she finished her rant, slightly out of breath. "But now, since the army is actually attacking…"

"There's more," said Anna. She shared a look with Kristoff.

Glinda whirled around and narrowed her eyes, looking at them both. "More? What do you mean, more?" she demanded.

Anna bit her lip. "When we were going through some stuff," she began, "to search for something, anything, that could help us with the war – you know, some of my father's papers…"

Glinda nodded with a straight face. "To see if he had some kind of manual titled "How To Win A War"?"

Anna couldn't suppress a giggle. "Something like that."

Glinda giggled, too. "I don't suppose you found such a thing?"

"No." Anna shook her head.

"Though we did find some information on battle strategies," Kristoff chimed in.

"Anyway," Anna took over again, and Glinda couldn't help but smile at the way they complemented each other. Anna broke herself off when she saw the blonde's smile. "What is it?"

"It's nothing," Glinda assured her, still smiling brightly. "You two are just adorable. You almost finish each other's –"

"Don't say it!" Anna cried, leaping forward and clamping a hand over the blonde girl's mouth.

Glinda made some muffled sounds.

"Sorry." Anna let go of the blonde, who spluttered indignantly and started smoothing out her dress and pushing up her curls. "It's just that… that was something Hans once said to me," she mumbled, averting her gaze. "And I _really _don't want to be reminded of him in any way."

"Oh, I understand," Glinda assured her a bit sourly. "But did you _have _to attack my perfectly styled hair like that?"

"Girls," Kristoff reminded them. "Back to the matter at hand."

"Right." Anna grew serious again. "Glinda, we found this." Kristoff pulled something from his pocket and showed it to Glinda.

The blonde narrowed her eyes and studied the object. "Where?"

"In a secret drawer of a desk in my parents' study," said Anna quietly.

Glinda drew in her breath with a sharp hiss. "Are you sure?"

"Glinda," Kristoff said patiently. "We know where we found this. We were both there. Of course we're sure, or we wouldn't even have told you."

Glinda breathed in deeply through her nose, then exhaled slowly. "Alright," she said, her voice sounding a bit higher than usual. "Okay. That's…"

"Do you think it means what we're thinking it means?" Anna asked softly, and the blonde girl hesitated, then nodded reluctantly.

"I don't see what else it could mean," she admitted.

"Oh." Anna suddenly looked a little pale, hands trembling. "Oh, my…"

Kristoff caught her around the waist when she started swaying. "Anna?" he asked in concern. "You okay?"

"Yeah," she said faintly, though she didn't really look okay. "Just… surprised… shocked… you know."

Glinda shook her head in amazement. "Believe me, I know how you feel."

"I had never expected…" Anna took a deep breath. "It explains a lot, though."

"It does," Glinda agreed. Then she straightened up and took a deep breath.

"Okay," she said. "I know this is shocking, but we can't dwell on it right now. Elphaba and Elsa are in danger, and Jermain and Fiyero might be, too. Meanwhile, the Ozian army is nearly at Arendelle's doorstep, and we have no-one around who is experienced in battles. What are we going to do?"

"The general of our army is experienced," Kristoff reminded the blonde, still holding Anna close. "Maybe Sven and I could go up there and deliberate with him about our best course of action."

"I'll go with you," Anna decided.

Kristoff shook his head. "No, you're not," he said.

She stubbornly detached herself from him and crossed her arms. "Yes, I am."

"Anna." Kristoff cupped her face with one hand, using the other to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear. "It's too dangerous," he said gently. "I promised Elsa I'd take care of you and keep you safe."

"Kristoff," Anna mimicked him. "I'm the princess of Arendelle. With Elsa in prison, I'm the highest in rank in the entire kingdom. I need to show my face to the people, especially the army, and I need to be there to discuss strategies."

Kristoff sighed, clearly trying to come up with something he could say to counter that.

"I hate to say this," Glinda chirped, "but she's right, you know."

Kristoff sighed again, caving. "I know," he grumbled.

Glinda giggled. "You guys are too cute. Now, you – get ready to support the army, but please do me a favour and get back here before the actual action starts, okay? I don't want to have to explain to Elsa and the others that you got yourself killed."

They both nodded obediently.

"Good," decided Glinda. "Then I'm going to find the Grimmerie and see if I can rescue Elphie and Elsa. Questions? No questions? Okay then, let's go!"

* * *

Elsa and Elphaba were woken up rather harshly by a Gale Force guard ramming his rifle against the bars of Elphaba's cell.

"Get up, witch," he growled. "The Wizard wants to see you."

Elsa shot up. "Elphaba?"

"I'll be fine," the green girl said, rising to her feet and allowing the guard to tie her up. He gagged her as well.

"Precaution," he explained gruffly when he saw her frown. "His Ozness doesn't want you chanting spells and escaping."

He led Elphaba away, closing the door behind them. The raven-haired witch was taken to the Throne Room, where the Wizard was already standing, feet planted firmly wide apart, hands behind his back.

"You can go now," he told the Gale Force guard, who bowed and left the room.

The Wizard slowly walked around Elphaba, studying her intently from all angles. She tried to keep glaring at him, but since she was still tied up, she couldn't keep her gaze on him without twisting her neck completely.

"Well, well, well," he said, finally stopping again in front of her. "I'm going to remove your gag now, Elphaba, but don't make yourself any illusions – the moment you start chanting a spell, I won't hesitate to shut you up." He pulled a gun from his pocket and casually pressed it into her side. Then he pulled off the gag.

"There," he said. "That's better. Now, Elphaba. You may call me 'Daddy'."

Elphaba snorted. "In your dreams!"

That earned her a kick between the ribs, and she doubled over on the floor.

"Now," the Wizard said conversationally. "That's not very nice, my darling girl. Is that how you greet your long-lost father?"

"You," she said through gritted teeth, "are not my father. You may be biologically, but that doesn't mean anything."

"On the contrary, dear," the Wizard said, smiling as if she had said something very amusing. "It means everything."

He moved away from her and sat down on a chair opposite her, though he kept the gun pointed at her.

"You see, darling," he said, "I have brought you here to make you a proposition."

"Stop calling me that," she spat.

He shook his head. "You're my daughter," he declared. "I can call you whatever I want."

She glared at him.

"Elphaba," he said, moving his chair closer to her and leaning forward, bringing his face close to hers. She turned away in disgust, but he grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him.

"Be nice," he warned her. He slowly trailed his gun down her side. "I need you alive for now, but that doesn't mean I will hesitate to blow a hole in your shoulder. Or your shin. Or you knee – I heard that hurts a lot. Or your arm…"

"I get the picture," Elphaba snapped.

"Good." The Wizard smiled again. "So, my dear baby girl, hear me out. We're family, you and I. I'm your father, you're my daughter. Now, that complicates things… but it could also be a huge opportunity for us."

She just raised one eyebrow.

"Elphaba," he said, leaning in even more, an intent look in his eyes. "We could rule Oz together, you and I. Father and daughter. We could change things for the better, you and I. Imagine this, Elphaba – we could take over Ev, Fliaan, Quox… Arendelle. We could rule the world!"

She stared at him, disgust written all over her face.

He cleared his throat. "Or," he offered, "we could _save _Arendelle by capturing Hans and locking him away, and stopping the army from attacking our neighbours across the Great Kells. How does that sound?"

For a moment, she was tempted, purely because she absolutely did not want anything to happen to Arendelle – or anyone in it; but then she looked into his eyes, saw the intense, almost insane look in his eyes, and she remembered who she was talking to.

"All you have to do," the Wizard spurred her on, "is say yes."

She clenched her jaw. She would find another way to save Arendelle.

She opened her mouth. The Wizard looked at her expectantly.

"No," she said.

His face fell.

"Never," she added, just to be clear. "I will never work with you."

The Wizard nodded slowly. "Fine," he said, leaning back, tapping the gun against his knee. "I was afraid you'd say that, but I wanted to give you a fair chance of accepting my offer out of your own free will. You are my daughter, after all. I was hoping you'd see things from my point of view." He slowly shook his head. "Apparently, I was wrong. I suppose I should have expected this. You're too stubborn and strong-willed for your own good." He rose to his feet and raised his voice. "Bring her in!"

The door to the Throne Room opened and two Gale Force soldiers brought Elsa in. Her hands were bound behind her back and she was struggling, though she stopped when she saw the Wizard and Elphaba.

The soldiers threw her onto the floor at the Wizard's feet and he looked down at her. Then he pointed his gun at the snow queen and looked back up at Elphaba, an evil glint in his eye.

"Two can play this game," he said. "I'm done being nice, my sweet, innocent, darling daughter." He bored his eyes into hers.

"You are going to work with me," he said, the threat clear in his voice, "or Oz be my witness, I will shoot your little icy friend here so full of holes that you won't be able to tell her back from her front side."

He cocked his gun. "You have three seconds. One…"

* * *

**Did you miss my cliffies? :D Reviews earn you virtual cookies! (Crushed cookies, in some cases... and only two people out there will get what that means :P.)**


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: Your wish is my command, SuperSaphiraWhoLock.**

**Um... now, I already know you're all going to freak out over the first part of the chapter... BUT remember that it ends with some Kristanna fluff (not romance fluff yet, but still)... maybe that will temper your murderous urges a bit.**

**Or maybe not. In any case, I'm going into hiding straight after posting this chapter, just to be sure.**

* * *

**Chapter 6.**

"Two…"

Elphaba stared at Elsa helplessly. The white-haired girl was curled up on the floor, but she was looking up at the Wizard with defiance and determination shimmering in her eyes.

Elsa closed her eyes.

"Thr-"

"Stop!" Elphaba cried. "I'll do it! Just don't hurt her, please!"

The Wizard grinned at her. "I knew you'd see it my way." He smiled down at Elsa.

Then he fired.

The snow queen screamed in pain as the bullet penetrated the flesh of her arm.

Elphaba's eyes flashed. "You bastard!" she yelled, struggling heavily against the ropes around her wrists. "You said you wouldn't hurt her if I collaborated!"

The Wizard tapped his chin playfully, pretending to be lost in thought. "Did I now? No, I don't recall ever saying such a thing." He smirked. "I said I'd hurt her if you didn't cooperate," he reminded her. "I never said I _wouldn't _hurt her if you did."

Elphaba was beside herself with rage. "Why, you stinking, filthy piece of –"

"Be nice," the Wizard hissed, pointing his gun at Elsa's other arm.

Elphaba clamped her mouth shut, though her eyes were filled with rage and hatred.

The Wizard smiled and patted the green girl's head as if she were a pet dog. "Good girl. See? It's much easier to work with me than against me." He looked down at Elsa. "Look what she's done to you," he said to her. "Now you have a hole in your arm because of your sweet little green friend here."

Elsa glared at him despite her pain. "That was not," she grunted through gritted teeth, "her fault. _You're _the one who shot me!"

The Wizard nodded. "But none of this would ever have happened if you hadn't become associated with _her_." He pointed at Elphaba, who looked about ready to explode.

When he looked back at Elsa, he was startled by the fiery look in her eyes – much like the one in Elphaba's.

He looked from one girl to the other. They were such unlikely friends, he mused; much like Elphaba and Glinda were. They were so different and so alike at the same time. Elsa, light-haired, fair-skinned and blue-eyed; Elphaba, whose skin was green and whose hair and eyes were dark. He noticed they were wearing complementing colours, which made him smile. He sensed some Glinda in there.

They were both stubborn and fiery, that much was true; but he also knew that they would both go to far lengths for the ones they loved. Maybe he could use that to his advantage.

He looked from one pair of large, flaring eyes to the other. One blue, one brown. One with ice and snow powers, one with explosive, telekinetic ones. If he could get them both on his side…

"Elsa," he said. "I'd like to make you a proposition."

Elsa tossed her braid over her shoulder with a shake of her head, wincing when that sent a stab of pain through her injured arm. "No."

"Hear me out."

"I already know what you're going to ask, and my answer is no." She blinked rapidly in an attempt to hold back tears. She wanted nothing more than to stay strong and determined and to _not _falter in front of the Wizard; but heavens, that shot wound hurt.

The Wizard turned to Elphaba. "Convince her," he ordered.

She pressed her lips together.

"Elphaba…"

She shook her head with a quick, jerky movement. A strand of jet black hair fell into her eyes and she blew it out of her face, maintaining her glare – which, despite everything, the Wizard was rather impressed by.

These were fiery young girls. They could be so valuable to him. Now if he could only get them to work with him…

Thankfully, just then, his perfect leverage came suddenly jumping into the Throne Room through the window, in the form of a Vinkun prince carrying a rifle, which was immediately pointed at the Wizard.

"Let the green girl go," Fiyero said triumphantly.

* * *

Elphaba was glad she was kneeling down; because she was sure that had she been standing, her knees would have buckled with relief.

"Fiyero," she breathed.

His eyes flickered towards her for a moment, quickly assessing her for any damage; then he saw the blood on the floor and his eyes widened when he saw the wound in Elsa's arm. He tightened his grip on his rifle.

"Ah, Master Fiyero," the Wizard said casually, half-turning to look at Fiyero, but his gun still pointed at Elphaba. "Decided to join the party? How lovely to have you."

"Let them go," Fiyero ordered. "Both of them. Let them go right now, or I swear to Oz I'll blow your head right off your neck!"

"Ah." The Wizard nodded seriously. "Now that's an interesting concept. You would undoubtedly shoot me if I did something to upset you. I don't make myself the illusion that this is just an empty threat – I know how much you all hate me and want to see me dead." He cocked his gun. "I have a question for you, though."

Fiyero didn't say anything, though something flickered in his eyes for a moment when he heard the sound of the gun cocking. He looked at Elphaba, whom the Wizard's gun was still aimed at, for a brief moment.

The Wizard smirked. "The moment you pull that trigger," he said, "I will pull my own. You'll have me. That's true. I will be dead and gone, and Oz will be rid of me forever." He cocked his head to the side, pretending to think about this. "But trust me when I tell you that I can fire before your shot kills me. Tell me, Fiyero – will killing me be worth it if that means you'll have to live the rest of your life without your little witch here?"

Fiyero's eyes widened.

"Don't fall for it!" Elphaba shouted. "Shoot him!"

"No!" Elsa struggled to sit up. "We'll find another way to kill him! Elphaba, I won't let you sacrifice yourself!"

"He has to die!"

"Fiyero, don't do it!"

"_Do it_, Fiyero!"

Both girls were looking up at him pleadingly, but of course he had already made his decision. There had never even been a sliver of doubt. He wanted to get rid of the Wizard more than anything, but not if that would cost him Elphaba.

"And so," he said, ducking his head slightly, "it seems like we're in an impasse."

"So it seems," the Wizard agreed.

"I'll surrender," said Fiyero. "On two conditions."

The Wizard quirked an eyebrow.

"I want the three of us in the same cell," he said, "and I want some things brought in so that we can take care of Elsa's arm."

The Wizard considered that for a moment. "Fair enough," he conceded. The prince could work in his advantage – he was so intent on keeping Elphaba alive and safe; maybe he could be the one to convince her that it really was most beneficial for everyone if she would just work with the Wizard instead of against him.

And if Fiyero couldn't persuade her with words… well, then maybe torturing him before Elphaba's eyes would do the trick.

Elphaba struggled. "Fiyero, no!"

"Guards!" the Wizard barked. Gale Force soldiers entered the room and Fiyero dropped his rifle.

The Wizard gestured towards the prince. "Seize him," he said. "Take him and the girls back to the dungeons and put them in the same cell. Oh, and bring them a first aid kit." He waved them off, locking eyes with Elphaba for a moment before moving on to Elsa.

"I," he said, looking from one to the other and back, "will see the two of you again in the morning."

With a wave of his hand, they were dragged off, the door creaking and then slowly falling shut behind them.

* * *

"Princess Anna!"

The buzz immediately went through the entire camp, causing Anna to blush slightly. Her sister had always been the one people bowed for, not her; but now, everyone was bowing. Every single soldier they came across.

When they reached the general's tent, Kristoff stopped Sven and helped Anna off the reindeer's back. The general came out before they even had a chance to announce their presence.

"My men told me you were coming," he explained upon seeing her dazed look. He, too, bowed for her. "Princess Anna. It is a pleasure."

She curtsied a bit awkwardly. "The pleasure is mine."

"Honestly," Kristoff whispered to Sven as he petted the reindeer's neck and fed him half a carrot, stuffing the other half in his own mouth, "I don't think it's _anyone's _pleasure. I mean, we're here because we're being _attacked_, for goodness' sake."

Sven bellowed in agreement.

"General," said Anna, stepping aside a little, "this is Kristoff. Kristoff, this is General Darning."

The men shook hands.

"Why don't you two come in?" the general suggested. "I imagine we have a lot to discuss."

Anna nodded and followed him inside of the tent. Kristoff petted Sven one more time before following her.

"So what are we going to do now?" Anna asked worriedly once they were inside.

The general cleared his throat. "Well… the Ozian army is currently travelling through the mountains," he explained. He pointed at the Great Kells on a large map lying open on a table in his tent. "It will probably take them a few more days to reach the borders of Arendelle."

"But the fjord is in the way," Kristoff chimed in. "Isn't it? They don't have boats, do they?"

"No." The general sighed. "But you know as well as I do that there are ways around the fjord."

"Ways we can cut off," Kristoff said. "They can't enter Arendelle unseen, right? So why not just block the roads they can take?"

"Because," the general snapped, "their army is at least three times as big as ours! I don't know what this Prince Hans has been telling people, or what kind of motivation the ruler of Oz has given his army; but whatever it was, it worked! Arendelle is only a small kingdom, Master Kristoff. We don't have a huge military force. Oz is much bigger than we are, and it has more inhabitants."

"I wonder what the Wizard has been telling them," Anna said thoughtfully.

Kristoff snorted. "He's probably been lying."

"Probably," Anna agreed. "If he'd just said, "Hey, I want you all to attack an innocent kingdom!", I bet no-one would have wanted to work with him."

"So our main mission would be," Kristoff concluded slowly, "to defeat the Wizard and convince him to tell the people the truth."

"Or someone else," said Anna. "Glinda is still known as the Good Witch of the North in Oz. They trust her… they'd listen to her."

"Maybe," Kristoff acknowledged. "But I don't think she could convince an entire army to refrain from carrying out the Wizard's orders, just by batting her eyelashes and tossing her hair."

Anna giggled. "Probably not. We'd have to put the Wizard out of power first." She tilted her head a little to the side. "But the others are working on defeating the Wizard, right? They can succeed, I know they can. Elphaba and Elsa have their magic, and with Glinda, Fiyero and Jermain there, too…" She chewed the inside of her cheek as she thought about it all. "I'm confident that they can pull it off, sooner or later. Glinda and Jermain are already on their way to help Elsa and Elphaba. So all _we _have to do is protect Arendelle from the army until the others succeed."

The general sighed. "Your Highness, that is easier said than done," he said wearily.

Kristoff, in the meantime, had been studying the map on the table. "What if," he said, "we block the way here, here and here." He pointed at several spots on the map.

"Then the army can still come through there and there," the general pointed out.

"Yes," Kristoff acknowledged, "but if they were to try that, we could see them coming from across the fjord. Our advantage is that we have an overview – we can see the entire border with Oz from here. If we post men in these three spots, we'll be able to see them coming and once we know the path they're going to take, we can prepare to block that path and stop them. That way, we can try to win time by preventing them from entering Arendelle, and meanwhile Elsa and Elphaba can do their thing and defeat the Wizard."

Anna squealed and threw her arms around him. "That's a great idea, Kristoff! I didn't know you knew so much about battle strategies!"

He flushed a little with her hanging around his neck like that. "Yes, um, well…" He rubbed the back of his neck with a sheepish, slightly nervous laugh. "I, um…"

Anna kissed his cheek. "You're a genius!"

His face became even redder.

The general studied the map and the path Kristoff had set out, and he had to admit, "That really is a good plan, Master Kristoff."

Kristoff beamed at him.

"I would like for you to stay here," the general said, "to keep an eye on the plan and help us if needed."

Kristoff nodded. "I'll stay," he said. "I'll just send Anna back to the palace on Sven, and –"

"Whoa, whoa." Anna crossed her arms. "No way," she declared. "If you're staying, then so am I."

"Anna –"

"I'm not leaving you, Kristoff."

He tried to ignore the bright red colour that once again crept into his cheeks. "But I promised Elsa –"

"I know," she cut him off. "I know you promised her you'd protect me, and I promised her I'd stay safe… but I can't just sit back and watch, Kristoff. She's my sister. This is my kingdom. My sister and my friends are out there, fighting for Arendelle, and it's time I start doing the same. I want to help." She glared at him, daring him to defy her. "So I'm staying, and that's the end of it."

Kristoff nodded with a sigh, and Anna flung her arms around him again. "Yay!"

Without thinking, he dropped a kiss to the top of her head.

Anna's breath caught in her throat and she quickly detached herself from him, shaking her hair in front of her face to hide her dark red blush.


	7. Chapter 7

**AN: This chapter kind of sucks, but I felt guilty for not updating for so long. Exam week is over, but I'm still very busy, so not much time to update... I'll try my best, though; and I promise that no matter what, I will finish every fic I started.**

* * *

**Chapter 7.**

"You," Elphaba said brusquely as she cleaned the shot wound in Elsa's arm, "must be the stupidest idiot in all of Oz."

"Gee, thanks," said Elsa, grimacing slightly in pain.

Elphaba let out a soft chuckle. "Not _you_. _Him_." She nodded at Fiyero.

He shrugged. "Brainless, remember?"

"Don't give me that crap." Elphaba shook her head and pushed at Elsa's shot wound a little too hard, causing the white-haired girl to yelp softly. "Oh, I'm sorry, Elsa."

"It's okay," the snow queen said through gritted teeth. "But can you just focus on treating my wound first and _then_ fight with Fiyero? I get the feeling you're sort of distracted right now."

Ignoring her friend, Elphaba continued to talk to Fiyero, never stopping her movements or taking her eyes off Elsa's arm. "Swinging into that Throne Room was bad enough in itself."

"I was trying to save you."

Elphaba raged on without listening. "But what you did there just now? Surrendering? After everything he's done to all of us?"

"Elphaba –"

"You had him, Fiyero. You could have shot him and it would all have been over."

"And what? Let him shoot you, too?"

"Yes!" Elphaba's eyes flickered up to meet Fiyero's for a moment before looking down at Elsa's wound again. "Killing him was the most important thing, Fiyero! You weren't supposed to surrender!"

"I couldn't let him kill you."

"Like I said, you're the stupidest idiot in all of Oz."

"Fae –"

"The world would have been better off without me, anyway. I'm a wicked witch, remember?"

"_Ouch_!"

"Sorry, Elsa."

"Fae," Fiyero pressed on stubbornly. "I couldn't."

"Why not?" the green girl demanded irritably, taking a bandage from the first aid kit one of the guards had given them to treat Elsa's arm. She carefully started winding the fabric around the snow queen's upper arm, covering the wound. "Why in Oz not, Fiyero?"

"Because I love you!"

"I don't care!"

He didn't say anything. The silence caused her to look up for a moment.

She gave an irritable sigh when she saw the expression on his face. "Oh, don't give me that beaten puppy look," she snapped at him. "Of course I _care_. You know what I mean. You shouldn't have let your own feelings get in the way of what is best for Oz. And for Arendelle, too. You could have saved Anna, Kristoff, Sven and Olaf, Elsa and Jermain and Glinda… all in one shot. And yet you didn't."

"Because I love you."

"Right."

"Well," he said, crossing his arms. "Maybe I'm a very selfish person."

Elphaba let out a humourless laugh. "That's for sure."

"And maybe this was all part of some genius master plan to save you two."

Elphaba snorted. "Yeah, right."

"You can't be _angry _with me for trying to preserve your life, Elphaba."

"Watch me." In her annoyance, she gave a hard and impatient tug on the bandage. Elsa yelped again and yanked her arm out of Elphaba's grip.

"That's enough," she said, scowling. "I'll do it myself."

"Elsa, I'm sorry," Elphaba began.

"Here, let me." Fiyero scooted closer to the white-haired girl and finished bandaging up the wound with quick, but gentle fingers. "There you go."

Elsa stared at the bandage, clearly impressed. "Where did you learn that?"

"Gale Force," Fiyero said with a smile.

Elsa returned the smile. "Thank you."

Elphaba just crossed her arms and huffed.

"Oh, would you two stop it?" Elsa burst out. "You're acting like an old married couple!"

Fiyero grinned.

"I can't help it," Elphaba growled. "He is infuriating."

"No," Fiyero corrected her. "I'm _right_, and you can't stand that."

Her eyes flashed. "That is not true!"

"Tell me, Fae, and be honest." Fiyero met her gaze and held it. "If it had been the other way around, if the choice had been yours… would you have shot him?"

She stared at him, her mouth slightly agape. She hadn't expected that.

"Would you have shot the Wizard? Would you have taken the risk of him shooting _me_?"

She opened and closed her mouth a few times, wanting to say yes.

No sound came out.

She hated lying. And if she said yes, she would be lying.

So she closed her mouth and looked away.

Fiyero smiled in relief. "You had me worried there for a moment," he said with a small laugh. "I honestly thought you were going to say yes."

She sighed, reluctantly giving in. "I could never let anyone hurt you, Fiyero. You know that."

"And _I _could never let anyone hurt _you_." He looked at her. "Which is why I didn't shoot him."

She grumbled. "Point taken."

Elsa rolled her eyes. Then she looked at Fiyero. "You were saying something about a master plan before?"

"Oh, please." Elphaba sniffed. "He is just trying to cover up the fact that he didn't think – as usual – and came here to rescue us completely prepared."

Fiyero's eyes were twinkling. "Who said I came unprepared?"

Elphaba narrowed her eyes at him. Elsa sat up a little straighter, looking at the Vinkun prince expectantly.

In reply to the looks both girls gave him, he reached behind him and underneath his shirt and pulled out a piece of parchment.

Elsa stared at the paper, frowning. Elphaba's eyes, however, widened to the size of saucers.

"Fiyero…" she whispered. "Is that…"

He waved the parchment around teasingly. "Who's brainless now?"

"Fiyero!" The dark-haired witch flung her arms around him, kissing him deeply. "You're a genius!"

"It was Jermain and Glinda's idea," he admitted sheepishly.

She grinned at him. "Of course it was."

"Um, guys?" Elsa looked at them helplessly. "What's going on?"

"This is a page from the Grimmerie," said Elphaba, pointing at the piece of paper. "Remember? My big magic book?"

Elsa held her breath. "Does that mean…"

"Hopefully, yes," Elphaba said. "It means we can get out of here." She cast Fiyero a sideway look. "If the spell on this page will be of any use to us, that is."

"Glinda picked it," he defended himself. "She said this should do the trick of getting you out of here."

"What exactly happened?" asked Elsa.

"Glinda told us you two were captured," Fiyero explained. "I ran off to rescue you. Jermain caught up with me and talked me out of it, telling me he and Glin had a plan. Glinda had gone to get the Grimmerie where Fae had left it at the palace in Arendelle, and she told me to find a way to come near you two with this page. I think it's supposed to be a transportation spell."

Elphaba kissed him again. "I'm sorry I doubted you."

"Isn't it your job to doubt me?" he teased her.

She stuck out her tongue.

"So… spell?" Elsa said.

Elphaba nodded and studied the page for a moment. "I really hope this works."

Then she raised her arms and started chanting.

* * *

"Anna?"

She turned from where she had been petting Sven and smiled. "Oh, hi, Kristoff."

"I came to keep Sven company," he said, holding up a bunch of carrots, "but I see you've beaten me to it."

She giggled. "Well, there's always room for one more."

He stroked Sven's nose and looked over the reindeer's back into the distance, where the border of Arendelle was just visible with the naked eye. "Any sign of Ozian troops yet?"

Anna shook her head. "Not yet."

"Okay."

Silence settled over them. Kristoff fed Sven half a carrot, then ate his own half, still covered in reindeer drool. Anna shuddered with repulsion.

Kristoff grinned at her. "It doesn't taste all that bad, you know."

Anna held up both hands as if that would ward off his words. "I don't want to hear a word about it. It's disgusting."

Kristoff just laughed and scratched Sven behind the ears. The reindeer bellowed happily.

Anna sighed and laid both her arms on Sven's back, staring over it into the distance. "I hope Elsa is okay."

"Don't worry about her," Kristoff said consolingly. "She can take care of herself, and the others are there, too."

Anna sighed again. "I know. I just wish I could see for myself that she is alright."

When Kristoff didn't immediately reply, she turned her head questioningly. Her breath caught in her throat when she realised how close he was to her. He leant forward slowly, bringing his face closer to hers, and she blinked rapidly.

_He's going to kiss me. He is really going to kiss me. Oh, goodness, he's going to _kiss _me!_

She tilted her face up a little, half-closing her eyes and pursing her lips slightly in anticipation. His face came closer and closer and his arm went around her…

…in order to be able to grab the spyglass from the table behind her.

Before she had fully realised what was happening, he had already pulled back again and brought the spyglass to his eye.

Anna felt like kicking herself. He hadn't been trying to kiss her at all – he had just reached for the spyglass. Stupid, stupid, stupid. She sighed and leant against Sven, petting the reindeer's neck listlessly.

"They're coming," Kristoff said tensely.

She looked up. "What?"

He handed her the spyglass. "Here, see for yourself," he said. "On the other side of the fjord. They're heading our way."

She gasped when she saw it. "The Ozian army."

"Come on," he said, grabbing her hand and pulling her with him. "We have to go warn the general."

* * *

"Fiyero! You made it!" Glinda flung herself at the prince the moment he and the two sorceresses came in sight. Before he could even hug her back, she had already let go of him again and was hugging Elphaba instead, still squealing. "Elphie! You're alright!" She then made to hug Elsa, but gasped before she could touch the snow queen. "Elsa! You're hurt!"

"Glinda!" Elphaba imitated her friend. "You're loud!"

The blonde looked around the forest to see if anyone had heard her. Thankfully, there was no-one in sight.

"Sorry," she whispered.

Elphaba rolled her eyes, but she was smiling. "It's good to see you, too."

"Elsa?" Jermain asked worriedly, gently touching the queen's shoulder, his eyes on the bandage around her arm. "Are you alright?"

"Fine," she said, shaking her head. "It doesn't hurt that badly."

"Liar," muttered Elphaba.

Elsa turned around and fixed the dark-haired witch with a glare. "Says the person who insisted she was fine, even when she was freezing to death."

"I knew you'd save my life!" Elphaba protested.

Elsa rolled her eyes. "Of course you did."

"Excuse me?" Glinda interrupted. "Could you please stop bickering? We need to make new plans… and there's something Anna and Kristoff found out while you were gone that I think you should know about."

"What?" Elsa and Elphaba said at the same time.

Glinda made a face. "Let's get back to Arendelle first," she said. "Elsa, you're coming with me in my bubble."

Jermain opened his mouth to protest, but Glinda cut him off.

"I know you want to keep her with you," she said, "and that's very adorable and all, but she's hurt. My bubble is the quickest and smoothest way to travel and thus the least painful for her. Okay? Elphie, you take your broom. Fifi, Jermain, you can just take your horses again. We'll meet you back at the palace. Okay? Okay!" She conjured up her bubble and rose into the air with Elsa. Elphaba quickly followed them.

The men just stood there, gaping after the blonde.

"Since when has Glinda become a leader?" Jermain asked when he found his voice again.

Fiyero shook his head, speechless. "I have no idea."

* * *

"Glinda!" a voice shouted the moment Glinda's bubble landed.

The blonde's face brightened considerably. "Olaf!" she squealed. She knelt down to hug him tightly. "I'm sorry we all left you alone for so long! Are Kristoff and Anna with the army?"

The snowman nodded, but Elsa exploded. "_What_?!"

"Kristoff promised to keep an eye on her," Glinda assured the white-haired girl. "Nothing is going to happen to them, Elsa. Calm down."

"You just told me my little sister is with the _army_!" Elsa exclaimed furiously. Snowflakes started to flutter down from the sky. "Glinda, she was supposed to stay here! Right here, in the palace! She's not supposed to go out there and put herself in danger!"

"She's not putting herself in danger, Elsa, but she wanted to help," Glinda defended herself and Anna. "Would you stop that snowfall? If my hair goes frizzy, I swear to Oz I will never forgive you."

"You should have thought about that _before _you allowed Kristoff to whisk Anna off to the front lines of this war!" Elsa started pacing. "I can't believe you did that, Glinda!"

"It was her own choice!"

"She's only eighteen!"

"She's _already _eighteen. Elsa, she's old enough to make those decisions for herself. I couldn't have stopped her, even if I had wanted to."

"We must find her, then," Elsa decided. "We'll go after them and I'm going to bring her back here, no matter what. If I have to lock her up in an ice cage and drag her back here, I will."

Glinda sighed. "Elsa…"

Olaf padded over to the pacing snow queen. "Elsa?"

She looked down at him. "What is it, Olaf?"

"Anna just wants to help," he said a bit shyly. "And I do, too. I don't want to sit here and do nothing while you are all out there fighting. I want to do something. I think Anna feels the same way."

Elsa stared at the snowman for a few moments.

Glinda squealed and hugged Olaf again. "Oh, Olaf, you're so cute!"

Just then, Elphaba arrived as well, landing gracefully before raising her face to the sky, where the snowfall slowly stopped. She frowned slightly. "Glinda, what did you do?"

"What do you mean, what did I do?" the blonde protested. "I didn't do anything!"

"It's clear that you upset Elsa," the green girl pointed out, "or there wouldn't be any snow falling from the sky in the middle of summer."

"It's alright," Elsa mumbled. "We already talked it out."

Glinda looked at her. "Did we?"

Elsa sighed. "Yes. You are right," she admitted. She looked at Olaf. "Both of you. It's just that she's my little sister, and…"

"We understand," Glinda said softly. "Really, Elsa, we do. But Anna will be fine."

Elphaba noticed a stain of blood on Elsa's bandage. "Let's get you inside," she said. "It looks like your wound started bleeding again."

Glinda's eyes twinkled mischievously as she looked at something over Elphaba's shoulder. "Oh, hey, look, here come Fiyero and Jermain," she said innocently. "I'm sure Jermain wouldn't mind helping you with your arm."

Elsa scowled. "Glinda…"

The blonde just giggle and took Olaf's stick hand. "Come on, Olaf. I'll tell you everything that happened." She leant towards the snowman conspiratorially and whispered in his ear, loudly enough for the others to hear, "Let's give the lovebirds some privacy."

They disappeared inside the castle, both of them giggling.


	8. Chapter 8

**AN: This chapter is for Dimpled, who turned fifteen yesterday (sorry it's a day late, but like I said, I was very busy yesterday so I didn't have time to update :( ). A belated happy birthday to you! :)**

**BlueD - forgot to say this, but you scared the wits out of me with your review on the Frex Hunters Anniversary fic. I really thought you were going to stop reviewing for a moment :').**

* * *

**Chapter 8.**

"I –"

"Shh."

"Jermain –"

"_Shh_."

"Just because my arm is hurt, doesn't mean I'm suddenly unable to talk," Elsa pointed out drily.

"I'm trying to concentrate," Jermain defended himself, never taking his eyes off Elsa's arm.

She sighed. "Fiyero already bandaged it up for me. It's fine, Jermain, really."

"He's my little brother." Jermain carefully examined the bandaged wound. "I don't trust his judgement."

"Anna is my little sister," Elsa started to argue, "and I trust…" She trailed off when she remembered the whole debacle with Hans and the fact that Anna had wanted to marry him after one day. "Okay, no, I don't trust her judgement."

Jermain grinned at her. "Your arm was bandaged by the same guy who stole – and ruined – my toys when I was little, who always forgot to feed our pets, and who danced through life whilst sleeping with over a dozen girls when he got older. Granted, it seems like he had good judgement when it comes to Elphaba, so maybe he's grown up; but I still have trust issues when it comes to him."

Elsa laughed. Then she tilted her head a little to the side, eyeing him thoughtfully. "Why are you so intent on taking care of me?"

He frowned a little. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Because I can do it myself," she said.

"I know that." He shook his head. "But you shouldn't have to. I'm a prince, you know." He bowed, making her chuckle. "I was raised as a gentleman."

She looked down, her smile fading. "It's… it's been a long time since anyone really took care of me," she said quietly. "I mean… Anna is my little sister – _I _am supposed to take care of _her_. Ever since our parents died…" Her shoulders rose and fell in some sort of half-shrug. "I guess I'm just… not used to it."

"You should get used to it," he said quietly. "You deserve to get used of it."

She blushed a little and looked down. Jermain kissed her cheek, then continued to care for her wound.

"Jermain?" she whispered after a while.

He looked up at her. "Yes?"

"What are we going to do now?" she asked him softly, biting her lip. "What if we can't kill the Wizard? What if the Ozian army is stronger than our own? What if –"

"Hey," Jermain cut her off gently. He sat down on the couch beside her and pulled her into his side, allowing her to bury her face in his shoulder.

"We'll make it," he whispered to her, running his fingers through the ponytail she was still wearing her hair in, playing with it. "We have you and Elphaba on our side, and we have…" His eyes widened. "The Vinkus."

Elsa raised her head, sniffling a little. "What?"

"The Vinkus," he repeated, rising to his feet and starting to pace up and down the room.

"But we don't have the Vinkus," Elsa said, confused. She sat up a little to look at Jermain. "It's Ozian territory, and so the Vinkuns are fighting with the Ozians."

"They are now," Jermain agreed. "But would they still if we told them the truth? If they found out that the two sons of their own king are fighting for Arendelle, and not for Oz?"

"Do you think you could get them to fight on our side instead?" Elsa asked breathlessly. "If we had the Vinkun army as well…"

"…we could win this war," Jermain finished for her, eyes shining with excitement.

Elsa leapt to her feet and threw her arms around Jermain, kissing him full on the mouth. "You're a genius!"

He flushed. "Well, I, um…" He cleared his throat awkwardly. "I wouldn't say…"

Elsa laughed and hugged him tightly. "This could be just what we need!"

He smiled and hugged her back, kissing the top of her head. "I'll go talk to Fiyero straight away to arrange things," he said.

* * *

"Elsa stays here," Glinda decided. "She's hurt. Also, we might need her powers to protect Arendelle from the Ozian army if need be. We don't know how close they are."

"Elphaba should stay, too," said Jermain. "We're going to need her powers as well."

"I'm staying with Fae," Fiyero declared immediately.

Elphaba sighed. "Yero –"

"I don't want to leave you," he said. "Not again. Remember what happened last time?"

She shook her head and gestured towards Jermain, who appeared a little defeated. He was looking at Elsa helplessly. The snow queen herself was biting her lip.

Fiyero sighed, realising what his wife was trying to tell him, and he caved. "Okay," he grumbled. "Jer, you can stay with Elsa."

His brother perked up. "Really?"

"Yeah," Fiyero said gruffly. "But if anything happens to Fae while I'm gone, I'll have your head."

Jermain laughed. Elphaba rolled her eyes.

"I'll look after both girls," Jermain promised. He hugged his little brother. "Thanks, Fiyero. I know you want to stay here as well, but…"

"Yeah, yeah, it's fine." Fiyero waved him away. "Glin, are you coming with me? We could travel to the Vinkus by bubble and be back again by tomorrow."

"Of course!" Glinda agreed brightly.

Olaf tugged at her skirts. "Glinda?" he asked, giving her an imploring look. "Can I come?"

She smiled at him. "Sorry, Olaf, but I think it's better if you stay here. We'll be back soon, though."

He held out his stick arms. "Warm hugs?" he hinted.

She giggled and hugged him. "I'm a fan of hugs, too – you know that." She patted his head. "See you all again tomorrow!" Then she conjured up her bubble, patiently waited for Fiyero to say goodbye to Elphaba, and then they rose into the air.

"Oh, Elphie? And Elsa, you, too?" Glinda called down. "This is probably really not the best time to tell you this, but we're in a hurry and I forgot and I really think you should know about this." She pointed at the castle. "In the big sitting room, there's an object lying on the table," she explained quickly. "Anna and Kristoff found it among Anna and Elsa's parents' things. Elphie, you'll realise what it means the moment you see it."

Elphaba frowned. "What –"

"Bye!" Glinda called, waving. Then the bubble started moving in the direction of Oz.

Fiyero stared at the blonde. "What was that about?"

She grimaced. "Well..." She told him what she, Anna and Kristoff had found out.

Fiyero just continued to stare at her, completely shocked his time. "Are you sure?"

She nodded. "Positive."

He gawked at her. "Glinda, you can't tell them like _this_!" he protested. "You can't just let them find out about this by themselves! You should have made them sit down and talk to them about this!"

"Maybe," Glinda acknowledged. "But I actually prefer solving it this way."

"Why?!" Fiyero demanded.

Glinda smiled innocently at him. "Because either Elphie or Elsa is bound to freak out once they find out," she said, "and when she does, _we _are going to be far, far away."

Fiyero scowled. "I would have agreed with you, had this subject not been so serious," he muttered. "Glin, I know Fae can be a little… extreme… when she's angry… and Elsa is probably the same. But this is not something you should toss down at them whilst flying off in a bubble and leave them to process by herself."

"They're not alone. They have Jermain, and they have each other."

"This affects them all and they will want us there. You know that."

Glinda steered the bubble towards the west, in the direction of the Vinkus. "I know, but Fiyero, there really just wasn't any time." She looked at him. "They needed to know," she said. "Now they do. This could help in defeating the Wizard. I know I should have gone about it a little more subtly, but there simply was no time or opportunity for that." She patted his hand. "Don't worry, Fifi. Elphie and Elsa will be fine."

He hoped she was right.

* * *

"This is not possible!"

Elphaba stared at the small, green glass bottle sitting on the side table. "Tell me about it," she muttered.

Elsa whirled around. "No! I mean, this is _really _not possible!" She shook her head frantically. "I'm Anna's sister," she insisted. "My parents are my parents. My mother would _never _have cheated on my father."

"Maybe not," Elphaba acknowledged. "But couldn't she already have been pregnant with you when she married your father? They're royalty, after all – did they have an arranged marriage?"

Horror was written all over Elsa's face as realisation dawned on her. "Yes," she said, her voice trembling. "It was. They… they were married about a week after they had first seen one another."

"So maybe your mother had met the Wizard before that," Elphaba prodded gently, "and fell in love with him…"

Jermain was gawking at both sorceresses. "You know?" he said when he found his tongue again. "When Elphaba said the other day that she might have half-siblings running around all over the world, I honestly thought she was joking."

Elphaba flashed him a lopsided grin before training her eyes back on Elsa. Though unexpected, she couldn't really say the news surprised her all that much. She had known that the Wizard had travelled all around the world and met up with different people; and if he had had an affair and conceived a child with Melena, why wouldn't he have done that with more women? Maybe Elsa's mother had been lonely, too, at some point, like Melena. Maybe she had been like Anna – desperate to experience all there was to see in the world, to find true love and go on adventures. And maybe the Wizard had used that for his own little pleasures.

"Elsa?" the emerald witch said gently. "Are you okay?"

"No," said Elsa, sounding slightly desperate. "I just found out that my father is not really my father, my sister is not really my sister –"

"She is," Elphaba interrupted her firmly. "Just like Nessarose is still my real sister, Anna is still yours. Just because you have different fathers, does not mean you're not sisters, Elsa."

"- not to mention the fact that the man who really _is _my father is a fraud, a creep and not even from this world. He's a man who tortures Animals for fun, who likes hurting his own daughter and who starts wars just for fun – or to get what he wants… whatever. My point is, he's horrible."

"He is," Elphaba agreed. "But like I said, Elsa, it doesn't have to mean anything. He's my father, too, but it doesn't change anything about the situation we're in."

Elsa stared at the dark-haired witch.

"He's your father, too," she echoed. "I had almost forgotten about that. Does that mean… I mean, are you…"

Elphaba grimaced sympathetically. "Yeah, it does," she confirmed.

"You're my older half-sister," Elsa concluded, looking even paler than usual.

Elphaba nodded.

"You know?" Jermain said thoughtfully. "That actually does explain a lot. Fiyero and I have been talking about it before – you two are a lot alike, did you know that?"

They both stared at him and chorused, "We are?"

Jermain grinned and the girls exchanged an uncomfortable look.

"You are," the prince said. "You have the same bone structure and the same eyes… a different colour, but the same shape. You're both a little…" He hesitated for a moment, choosing his words carefully. "…explosive…"

Elphaba snorted a laugh. Elsa crossed her arms and glared at the Vinkun prince.

"…and you both care a lot about the ones you love," Jermain continued – quickly, because judging by the look on Elsa's face, she was about to prove him right about her being 'explosive'. "I mean… it's not _obvious_, but if you think about it…"

"You're right," Elphaba agreed. "It makes sense."

Elsa sighed and sank down onto a sofa. "It does," she said softly. "It even explains why I have blue eyes, while my parents and Anna have either green or grey ones. It's just…" She sighed again.

Elphaba sat down beside her and rubbed her back comfortingly. "I know."

Jermain sat down on Elsa's other side, taking her hands in his own and looking into her eyes solemnly.

"Elsa," he said. "Everything will be alright."

She gave him a small smile. "I know." She dropped her head against his shoulder. "It just came as a surprise, that's all. Or, well… I guess that's all."

Just then, Olaf came waddling into the room, cocking his head at them all. "Why are you all sitting there like that?" he asked a little suspiciously. "Is something wrong?"

Elsa shook her head. "Nothing's wrong," she said. "I just… found out something about myself, that's all."

"What?" Olaf wanted to know, plopping down onto his backside in front of the snow queen and looking up at her expectantly. "What did you find out?"

Elsa kept quiet, but Jermain said, "The King of Arendelle is not her real father."

Olaf looked at him with wide eyes.

"The Wizard of Oz is," said Jermain.

Olaf took a moment to process this information. "The Wizard? The one that tried to kill you all?" he asked, puzzled. Then his face brightened. "_Elphaba's _father?"

Jermain nodded and Elsa said quietly, "Yes."

Olaf jumped, clearly delighted. "But Elsa, that is fantastic!" he cheered. "You and Elphaba are _sisters_! And Anna is your sister, too! And Elphaba and Fiyero are already married, Jermain and you, Elsa, will marry soon, too, and then Anna and Kristoff, and then we'll just have to find a nice man for Glinda and we'll all be one happy family!" He danced around the room.

Despite herself, Elsa smiled.

"Wait." Olaf turned his head, narrowing his eyes. "I hear something."

The others fell silent, listening as well.

Olaf suddenly whooped. "It's Sven! Anna and Kristoff are back!"

Elsa and Elphaba exchanged a look and leapt to their feet. They followed Olaf, who was already running towards the door. Jermain was trailing not far behind.

The moment they ran outside, they caught sight of Kristoff, who was climbing off Sven with Anna in his arms.

"Quick!" he shouted, panic written all over his face as he ran towards Olaf, Jermain, Elsa and Elphaba.

Elsa's eyes widened. "What happened?"

"The Ozian army," Kristoff said breathlessly. "I… I tried to get her out of there, but she wanted to help, and… she… she was shot." His face was paler than any of the others had ever seen it. "Anna has been shot."


	9. Chapter 9

**AN: Ugh, finally. Couldn't update anything into my Doc Manager all day ;_;. But now here it is! Was this fast enough? :)**

**Thank you all so much for your lovely reviews, by the way!**

**BlueD: noted :P. Both the reviewing thing (which I like) and the birthday (I'll have a chapter ready to dedicate to you)!**

**PocketSevens: um... yeah. I think you need to do just that :3. Again. Or maybe not. No death threats yet, so I think I'm safe... for now.**

* * *

**Chapter 9.**

"Okay, here's what we need to do," Jermain said urgently after Kristoff had carried Anna inside and laid her down on a bed. "Judging by the angle and location of her shot wound, I think the bullet must have pierced a vital organ."

Kristoff made an odd noise in his throat and Elphaba placed a comforting hand on his arm. "We're going to help her, Kristoff." She looked at Jermain. "Aren't we?"

The prince took one look at Kristoff's pale face; then at Elsa, who looked about ready to either faint or burst into tears; and he nodded firmly. "We're going to try our best." He looked at the raven-haired witch. "Is there a healing spell in the Grimmerie?" he asked her.

"I'll look for one," she promised, after which she ran off to get the large spell book.

"Kristoff," Jermain said. "I need hot water. Elsa, could you get me some towels?"

They both hurried off, returning quickly with the requested things. Elphaba came running back into the room as well, the Grimmerie in her arms.

"I found a spell that might help," she said breathlessly. "I'll need to alter it a little, but I think that if I use the power of the Grimmerie and combine it with my own magic powers, it should work. It will only heal her internal injuries, though," she warned him. "Not the wound itself – just the damage the bullet has done to her organs."

Jermain nodded brusquely. "Alright. We can work with that." He ordered Elsa to cover a nearby table with towels, which she quickly did; and the prince lifted Anna up and laid her down on the towels. The table was a little smaller than a normal dining table, but it was still big enough for Anna to fit on. More importantly, it was the right height, so that Jermain could reach everything swiftly instead of having to bend over all the time.

He ripped open Anna's dress near the bullet wound. Elsa whimpered softly when she saw the wound, and Elphaba laced her fingers with the snow queen's and squeezed softly.

"She'll be okay," she said softly. "Really. Jermain knows what he's doing, Elsa."

"How…" Elsa swallowed. "How do you know all this?" she asked Jermain. There was a catch in her voice and her fingers were shaking as she ran them through her hair.

"Gale Force," he replied curtly, working on clearing the area around Anna's wound and cleaning it with the water. Anna moaned softly, but she was clearly still unconscious; her face was pale, her eyes were closed, and her breathing was shallow.

"We all had to take medical training," Jermain explained while he worked. "We learnt about different parts of the human anatomy and we were taught what to do when one of us got hurt. There were different procedures for different kinds of injuries – varying from stab and shot wounds to burns and from the stomach and abdominal area to head injuries. Trust me, I know what I'm doing."

"I know," Elsa said in a small voice. "I trust you."

The Vinkun prince looked up, looking from Elphaba, to Elsa, to Kristoff, and back again. "Listen to me," he said solemnly. "To keep Anna alive, I'm going to need all of your help."

Kristoff nodded, still looking pale. "Of course."

"Can I help?" Olaf, whom no-one had even noticed come into the room, asked a little shyly.

Jermain smiled quickly at the snowman. "Sorry, Olaf," he said apologetically. "To be completely honest… you can't even reach the table."

Olaf looked down, his face falling. "Oh, yeah."

"But if you could get me some more towels and a few smaller pieces of cloth," Jermain suggested, "that would be great."

Olaf brightened at that and nodded. "I'm on my way!" With that, he quickly padded off.

Jermain looked at Kristoff. "I'm going to remove the bullet from her abdomen," he said. "I need you to keep her still while I'm doing that."

Kristoff pressed his lips together until they formed a thin line. Then he nodded.

"I can do that."

"You need to keep her _really _still," Jermain warned him. "If she moves, I could accidentally hit another organ and that's the last thing we want right now. Hold her very, _very _still. Understood?"

Kristoff nodded again, more forcefully than the last time. "I can do this," he said. "Really."

"Alright then." Jermain looked at the girls. "Elphaba," he said. "The moment I remove the bullet, I need you to get over here and cast that healing spell. There's going to be a lot of blood and if we let her bleed for too long, she might die of blood loss. We don't want that."

"Obviously." Elphaba moved closer to the table, though she was careful not to stand in Jermain or Kristoff's way. "I'm ready."

"Elsa," Jermain said, putting pressure on Anna's wound. The girl whimpered and moaned again in pain, but she did not wake up. Kristoff stroked her hair, whispering reassuring words to her.

The prince looked up, only to find Elsa standing completely frozen, staring at her sister's pale face.

"Elsa!" he said sharply and her head snapped around.

"What?"

"Stay with me here," he said gruffly. "I need your full attention for this, okay?"

She swallowed, but nodded. "Okay. What do you want me to do?"

"Cool her down," he said. "I need you to do that right now. It will thicken her blood, meaning it will be less likely that she should die of blood loss; and it will make her less conscious of what is happening, thus decreasing the amount of pain she's bound to experience. I need you to cool her down, Elsa, and I need you to do it now. Before the bullet causes so much damage that we can't save her anymore."

Elsa blinked at him, mouth slightly agape. "But… but I can't…"

"Yes, you can," Jermain said firmly. "You have to." He locked his eyes with hers. "I have faith in you."

She took a deep breath. "Okay."

"Don't freeze her," Jermain said, warning her one last time. "Just cool her off. Can you do that?"

"I think so." Elsa closed her eyes, focusing on her love for her sister, knowing now that love was the key to correct use of her powers. She imagined cooling Anna down, slowly, degree by degree, very slowly, draining the warmth from her body…

"Stop," Jermain said suddenly. He was feeling Anna's forehead. "That's enough." He looked up for a moment and smiled at Elsa. "You did great."

She slumped in a chair, unable to hold herself up any longer as she watched Jermain work on her sister.

As he removed the bullet, Kristoff had a hard time keeping Anna still. Despite the fact that she was unconscious and even less aware of the pain because of the decrease in her body heat, it obviously still hurt. Kristoff had to hold her down by practically lying over her, keeping her from thrashing.

Jermain worked carefully, yet quickly, scrunching his nose up in concentration as his fingers searched for the bullet inside Anna's body. Anna whimpered. Jermain pulled the bullet out, breathing a sigh of relief.

"Elphaba," he said, and she immediately rushed forward, the Grimmerie in her outstretched hands.

"_Ah Nem Vulnus Sangra Malum,_" she chanted softly and quickly, "_Eleka Calda Sangra Ah Tum Ne Dolor Signum Eh Sana_."

Immediately, the blood flow from Anna's bullet wound dramatically decreased as the tissue inside her abdomen quickly healed itself, recovering from the damage the bullet had caused inside of her. Blood still trickled out of the wound itself, but Jermain quickly stitched that up, working swiftly to close up the wound as neatly as possible before cutting the wire and putting everything down, taking a few deep breaths.

"That's it," he said. "That's all we can do."

Elphaba sank down onto a couch, her energy drained because of the use of her magical powers. Kristoff sat down next to her, still looking so pale he was almost grey.

"Will she make it?" he croaked. He and Elsa both looked at Jermain hopefully, waiting for an answer.

The prince shrugged helplessly. "I don't know," he said. "There's no way to tell. I don't know how bad the damage was and I don't know for sure what the effect of Elphaba's healing spell has been. We're just going to have to wait and see."

Elsa closed her eyes for a moment. Kristoff sagged against the back of the couch, looking more tired than any of the others had ever seen him. Olaf plopped down on the floor at Kristoff and Elphaba's feet, the expression on his face sad instead of cheerful for once.

"Elsa," Jermain said softly, making the white-haired girl jump.

The prince pointed at Anna, who was shivering now, her lips a little blue. "I think we need to heat her up again. Can you do that or shall I do it the old-fashioned way?"

Elsa gave him a questioning look, at which he clarified, "A big fire and some thick blankets."

She shook her head. "I can do it," she said. She slowly moved closer to her unconscious sister, concentrating. As the colour returned to Anna's cheeks and the girl stopped shivering, Elsa reached out to smooth some hair away from Anna's brow, the touch of her slim fingers light.

"I'm sorry, Anna," she whispered. "Please be alright."

Jermain, who had been washing his hands, now gave her a reassuring smile. He dried his hands on one of the unused towels before walking over to Elsa and drawing her into his arms. "Don't worry, Elsa," he said soothingly, guiding her head to rest against his shoulder. "We've done everything we could. And don't be sorry. It's not your fault."

"It is, though," she whispered. "She's my little sister. If I don't protect her, then who will?"

"No," said Kristoff, his head hanging down. "It's _my _fault. I didn't keep a close enough eye on her. I allowed her to come with me as we went to stop the Ozian army and I shouldn't have. I should have made her stay behind…"

"Knowing her, she would just have followed you on her own," Elphaba noted, "which would have been far more dangerous."

Kristoff raised his head to look at her. "What are you saying?"

She shrugged. "It's not your fault," she said. "It's not Elsa's fault, either. It's no-one's fault… alright, maybe the soldier who actually shot her could be held accountable," she acknowledged, "and I would blame the Wizard, too, since he started this whole war in the first place. But neither of you have any part in Anna getting hurt. These things just happen. Just like I couldn't save the Animals…" Elphaba fidgeted, looking down. "Like I couldn't save Boq… and also not my sister, in a way…" She shook her head. "I just mean to say that some things happen for no reason at all. Things you couldn't have prevented. That doesn't make them your fault."

Silence settled across the room for some time as they all thought about what the green-skinned witch had said.

* * *

"Are you okay?" Jermain asked Elsa quietly.

They were sitting next to each other in a sitting room adjoining to the room where Anna was in. They could just see the girl through the open door; she was still unconscious, but Kristoff had stayed by her side at all times.

Elsa sighed and shrugged slightly. "I guess," she said, biting her lip. "I just…" She couldn't really find the words to express how she was feeling. She was scared – terrified, actually – and she felt guilty, and she was sad and angry and…

Luckily, Jermain seemed to understand, for he just put his arm around her shoulders and squeezed softly, nuzzling her hair. "I know," he whispered. "I'm sorry."

"There's nothing for you to be sorry for." She sighed again and kicked off her shoes, curling up on the couch and snuggling into Jermain's side a little, seeking his warmth and his comfort. He drew her closer and she rested her head against his shoulder.

"Anna will be okay," Jermain said softly. "You just wait and see."

"I hope so." She looked over at Kristoff, who was clutching one of her sister's hands in his own as if it were his lifeline. He was talking to Anna, using his other hand to smooth her hair away from her forehead. He looked heartbroken – just like Elsa felt.

"Hey." Jermain cupped her face, stroking her cheek with his thumb as he made her look at him.

"Don't worry," he told her. "She'll be fine." He kissed her forehead. "We'll all be fine."

"I hope so," Elsa said quietly. Then she frowned a little. "Where is Elphaba?"

Jermain shrugged. "I don't know. Haven't seen her for a while now."

"I don't want her to be alone," said Elsa softly. "I mean… she's my sister." That still felt like a strange thing to say, but at the same time, it seemed to fit. "I know she was affected by all this, too."

Jermain smiled at her. "Feeling guilty again?"

She chuckled softly. "A little. I mean, Kristoff is with Anna, and you're here with me; and meanwhile, Fiyero is on his way to the Vinkus and Elphaba is all alone here."

"You're right." Jermain rose to his feet and offered Elsa his arm. "Let's find her, then. She's my sister, too, you know. Or, well, sister-in-law," he corrected himself.

Elsa looked up at him in surprise. "You're right!" she exclaimed. "I hadn't even thought of that."

They found Elphaba outside, sitting on top of the stairs leading up to the door and staring up at the night sky. The green girl looked up when she heard them coming.

"Hey," she said. "I figured you'd be inside, keeping an eye on Anna en being all cuddly together."

Elsa blushed furiously. "No! I mean… we were worried about you," she explained. "We didn't want you to be alone."

Elphaba laughed softly. "I'm not alone." She gestured towards Sven, who had plopped down next to her with his head in her lap, roaring happily; and Olaf, who was leaning against the reindeer, looking up at the stars.

Elsa smiled when she saw them. "I see."

"Is Anna okay?" Olaf asked.

"There's been no change," Jermain said. "We're just going to have to wait and see."

Elsa sat down beside Elphaba. "Do you miss him?" she asked quietly. "Fiyero?"

"Every second he's not with me," Elphaba said with a smile. "And honestly… I had never thought I would ever feel about someone that way." She got a faraway look in her eyes for a moment. "Not until he came barrelling into my life, nearly running me over in the process."

"Of course he did," Jermain muttered.

Elphaba gave him a grin before continuing. "So yes, I miss him," she said. "But it's okay."

Elsa eyed her curiously. "It is?"

"He's not in any danger," the dark-haired witch said simply. "Not right now, anyway. Even though he's not here, I know he's safe… and I know he loves me, too." She looked at Elsa. "That's the most important thing."

"Wow," Olaf said, clearly impressed. He was staring at Elphaba with wide eyes. "I was right! What you and Fiyero have _is _true love!"

Elphaba laughed. "Maybe," she acknowledged. "I don't really believe in that sort of thing."

Olaf gasped in shock. "You don't believe in true love?"

Elphaba scratched Sven between the ears, looking thoughtful. "I don't know," she said. "Maybe." She shook her head. "It doesn't matter now, though. Come on, let's get back inside – see if Anna is doing any better."

"I'll stay out here to keep Sven company," Olaf volunteered, and both girls smiled at him.

Then they turned and walked back into the palace.

* * *

**One more thing: I just found out (yes, only today, which I feel bad about because it was published April 5th!) that tooOTPtofunction, one of my reviewers, has written a Wicked/Frozen one-shot! It's called 'Singing' and it fits perfectly into the _Conceal, don't feel_/_Here we stand _universe. It's really, really cool and sweet and fluffy and I suggest you all go and check it out! :)**


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